NASA commercial cargo provider Northrop Grumman is scheduled to launch its 10th resupply mission to the International Space Station at 4:49 a.m. EST Thursday, Nov. 15, from the agency’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Live launch coverage will begin at 4:15 a.m. on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
NASA TV will air two prelaunch briefings for the mission. At 2 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 13, scientists and researchers will discuss some of the investigations and technology demonstrations to be delivered to the station. Mission managers will provide an overview and status of launch operations at 11 a.m., Wednesday, Nov. 14.
The Cygnus cargo spacecraft will launch on Northrop Grumman’s Antares rocket from Pad 0A of Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, located at Wallops. Following launch on Nov. 15, NASA TV coverage of the spacecraft’s solar array deployment will begin at 5:45 a.m., and a post-launch news briefing will held at approximately 7 a.m.
Under NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services contract, Cygnus will carry about 7,500 pounds of crew supplies and hardware to the space station, including science and research in support of dozens of research investigations.
Highlights of space station research that will be facilitated by investigations aboard this Cygnus are:
- An investigation into the complex process of cement solidification to explore how gravity levels like those on the Moon and Mars may potentially affect concrete hardening.
- Research to develop a mathematical model for how an astronaut’s perception of motion, body position and distance to objects changes in space.
- A test of the first integrated 3D printer and recycler to turn waste plastic materials into high-quality 3D-printer filament to create tools and materials, a key capability for future long-duration space missions beyond low-Earth orbit.
Included in the cargo are investigations that will enable U.S. National Laboratory research, which is managed by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space. They include an investigation to evaluate growth of protein crystals implicated in Parkinson’s disease and astrophysics research to examine the formation of chondrules, some of the oldest material in the solar system.
When Cygnus arrives to the space station, on Sunday, Nov. 18, Expedition 57 Flight Engineer Serena Auñón-Chancellor of NASA will grapple the spacecraft at about 4:35 a.m., backed up by Alexander Gerst of ESA (European Space Agency), who will monitor Cygnus systems during its approach for capture. They will use the space station’s robotic arm to take hold of the Cygnus, dubbed the SS John Young. After Cygnus’ capture, ground controllers will command the station’s arm to rotate and install it on the bottom of the station’s Unity module. NASA TV coverage of rendezvous and capture will begin at 3 a.m., and coverage of installation will begin at 6:15 a.m.
Cygnus is scheduled to remain at the space station until Feb. 12, 2019, when the spacecraft will depart the station and deploy several CubeSats before its fiery reentry into Earth’s atmosphere as it disposes of several tons of trash.
If the launch does not occur on Thursday, Nov. 15, the next launch opportunity is 4:27 a.m. Friday, Nov. 16, with NASA TV coverage starting at 4 a.m.
This Cygnus spacecraft is named in honor of the former astronaut and U.S. Navy officer John Young. As a NASA astronaut, Young logged 835 hours in space participating in six missions: Gemini 3 and 10, Apollo 10 and 16, and STS-1 and 9.
PRESS ACCREDITATION OFFICE HOURS OF OPERATION
Media badges will be issued at the Press Accreditation table in the Media Center at the Wallops NASA Visitor Center.
- Tuesday, Nov. 13: 1 – 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, Nov. 14: 6:15 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Thursday, Nov. 15: Badges will be issued at the Main Base badging location before boarding the buses at 2:30 a.m. for viewing the launch.
PRESS SITE HOURS OF OPERATION
The NASA Press Site at Wallops will be open as follows:
- Tuesday, Nov. 13: 1 – 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, Nov. 14: 6:15 a.m. – 3 p.m.
- Thursday, Nov. 15: 5 a.m. – noon
WHAT’S ON BOARD SCIENCE BRIEFING ON NASA TV
Tuesday, Nov. 13 (L-2 day): A science, research and technology briefing will be held at the NASA Visitor Center auditorium at 2 p.m. NASA Television will provide live coverage, as well as streaming Internet coverage.
Participants will include:
- Tara Ruttley, associate chief scientist for Microgravity Research in NASA’s Office of the Chief Scientist
- Diane Risdon, In-Space Manufacturing Refabricator project lead at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center
- Liz Warren, associate program scientist for the station’s National Lab
- Allison Porter, flight mission manager at Tethers Unlimited
- Michelle Lucas, founder and president of Higher Orbits
- Student researchers with Higher Orbits
- Siobhan Malany, founder and president of micro-gRx
PRELAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE ON NASA TV
Wednesday, Nov. 14 (L-1 day): A prelaunch status briefing will be held at Wallops NASA Visitor Center auditorium at 11 a.m. NASA TV will provide live coverage, as well as streaming Internet coverage.
Participants will be:
- Joel Montalbano, International Space Station Program deputy manager at NASA’s Johnson Space Center
- Frank DeMauro, vice president, Advanced Programs Division, Northrop Grumman
- Kurt Eberly, Antares vice president at Northrop Grumman
- Tara Ruttley, associate chief scientist for Microgravity Research, Office of the Chief Scientist, NASA Headquarters
- Doug Voss, deputy chief, Range and Mission Management Office, Wallops Flight Facility
POST-LAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE ON NASA TV
Thursday, Nov. 15: A post-launch news conference will occur at about 7 a.m and NASA Television will provide live coverage, as well as streaming Internet coverage.
Participants will be:
- Joel Montalbano, International Space Station Program deputy manager at NASA’s Johnson Space Center
- Frank DeMauro, vice president, Advanced Programs Division, Northrop Grumman
- Kurt Eberly, Antares vice president at Northrop Grumman
NEWS MEDIA TOURS
News and social media participants will receive tours of various facilities.
Remote Camera Set Up – Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport pad OA
Wednesday, Nov. 14 (L-1): News media will be able to establish sound-activated remote cameras to capture the liftoff from the pad. The bus departs the NASA Visitor Center at 6:45 a.m. After all cameras are deployed, media will return to the Visitor Center with an expected arrival time of 8:40 a.m.
Vehicle and Horizontal Integration Facility
Wednesday, Nov. 14 (L-1): News media will depart the NASA Visitor Center by bus at 9 a.m. for viewing the Northrop Grumman Antares on the launch pad and the next Antares and Cygnus being integrated in the Horizontal Integration Facility. Media will return to the NASA Visitor Center with an expected arrival time of 10:35 a.m.
Launch Viewing
Thursday, Nov. 15 (Launch day): News media and social media will depart the NASA Wallops Main Base badging Office at 2:30 a.m. by bus to travel to the launch viewing area approximately two miles from the launch site. Media that have been accredited can pick up their badges at the bus boarding location prior to departure. Media do not need to go the Media Center at the Visitor Center the morning of the launch to pick up badges.
NASA SOCIAL
Up to 50 social media representatives were invited to cover launch. The NASA Visitor Center will serve as their home base, and they will view launch from the viewing site on the NASA Wallops Mainland, approximately two miles from the launch pad. Social media will attend some of the same activities as the traditional news media and will receive tours of various facilities.
NASA TV LAUNCH COVERAGE
Thursday, Nov. 15 (Launch day): NASA TV live coverage will begin at 4:15 a.m. EST. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv
IN-FLIGHT NASA TV COVERAGE
If launch occurs Nov. 15, NASA TV will provide live coverage of the arrival of the Cygnus cargo ship to the International Space Station. NASA TV will cover the rendezvous and grapple of Cygnus on Nov. 18 beginning at 3 a.m. EST with grapple taking place at approximately 4:35 a.m.
NASA WEB PRELAUNCH AND LAUNCH COVERAGE
Prelaunch and launch day coverage of the Northrop Grumman CRS-10 flight will be available on the NASA website. Coverage will include live streaming beginning at 10:30 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 14, on the Wallops Ustream site. Live coverage on the NASA website begins at 4:15 a.m. on launch day. Photos of the launch will be available shortly after liftoff. For questions about countdown coverage, contact Keith Koehler at 757-824-1579. You can follow countdown coverage on our launch blog at: https://blogs.nasa.gov/northropgrumman
Learn more about the Northrop Grumman CRS-10 mission by going to the mission home page at: https://www.nasa.gov/northropgrumman
The Wallops Twitter feed will be updated throughout the launch countdown. To access the feed, visit: http://www.twitter.com/NASA_Wallops
The Wallops Facebook feed will be updated throughout the launch countdown. To access the feed, visit: http://www.facebook.com/NASAWFF
RECORDED STATUS
Recorded status reports on the launch of Northrop Grumman’s CRS-10 and associated prelaunch activities are available on the Wallops media phone line. The telephone number is 757-824-2050.
WIRELESS CAPABILITY
Wireless capability for the news media is available at the Wallops NASA Visitor Center and at the launch viewing site.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
For video b-roll and other International Space Station media resources, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/stationnews
For more information about the International Space Station, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/station
Stephanie Schierholz / Josh Finch
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
stephanie.schierholz@nasa.gov / joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov
Keith Koehler
NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Va.
757-824-1579
keith.a.koehler@nasa.gov
