Watch: Orbital ATK’s latest Cygnus spacecraft set for launch

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida — Three months after its successful launch of a Cygnus spacecraft, Utah-based Orbital ATK is ready to send another shipment of supplies to the International Space Station.

The OA-6 Cygnus is slated to take off from Space Launch Complex 41 at Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 9:05 p.m. MST Tuesday, pending weather conditions. This is the fifth time Orbital ATK is fulfilling a delivery to the ISS for NASA. It is also the second time Cygnus will be paired with an Atlas V rocket from United Launch Alliance.

Named the S.S. Rick Husband in honor of the late commander of space shuttle Columbia, which came apart on its disastrous return to Earth in 2003, the spacecraft will carry 7,900 pounds of cargo, satellites and science experiments, according to Orbital ATK. The spacecraft is anticipated to arrive at the ISS on Saturday at about 4 a.m. MST.

“We will further demonstrate the flexibility of the Cygnus spacecraft during the OA-6 mission,” said Frank Culbertson, president of Orbital ATK’s Space Systems Group, in a statement. “The S.S. Rick Husband will launch aboard an Atlas V rocket, once again exhibiting Cygnus’ compatibility with various launch vehicles. Once we fulfill our cargo resupply objectives, we will conduct science experiments onboard the spacecraft and deploy CubeSats during the mission; both of which are ‘firsts’ for Cygnus.”

Among the experiments being transported to the ISS is the Saffire-I, which was designed to help investigate what would happen if someone set a fire in space, according to NASA. After Cygnus leaves the ISS, a fire will be started by Saffire inside the empty supply vehicle.

“The Saffire-I investigation provides a new way to study a realistic fire on an exploration vehicle, which has not been possible in the past because the risks for performing studies on manned spacecraft are too high,” a post from NASA reads. “Instruments on the returning Cygnus will measure flame growth, oxygen use and more.”

While the last Cygnus launch in December was scrubbed multiple times due to weather before it finally launched, NASA reported that Tuesday’s chances look good with a forecasted 90 percent chance of acceptable conditions during the 30-minute launch window. The launch will be streamed live online through NASA TV.

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