NASA’s SpaceX 35th commercial resupply mission lifted off at 6:33 a.m. EDT Tuesday aboard a Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, carrying more than 6,300 pounds of supplies and hardware, bound for the International Space Station.
Following its successful launch, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will carry new scientific experiments, cargo, and the final pair of International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Arrays to the orbiting laboratory.
Dragon is scheduled to autonomously dock at 11 a.m., Thursday, Oct. 15, to the space-facing port of the space station’s Harmony module.
NASA will stream rendezvous and docking coverage beginning at 9:15 a.m., through a variety of platforms.
Learn where to watch online:
https:www.nasa.gov/live
The final pair of solar arrays will complete the space station’s power system augmentation, boosting available electricity for research, operations, and the station’s safe, controlled deorbit.
Astronauts will install the arrays during a series of spacewalks planned for later this fall.
Dragon also is delivering several new experiments, including hardware to manufactureartificial retinasin microgravity that could help restore vision for patients on Earth and3D heart tissue modelsto advance large-scale drug testing on future space missions.
Dragon also will carry materials to study how anew type of glassis formed in microgravity, andbrain organoidsthat could uncover potential treatment targets for neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and multiple sclerosis.
These are just a sample of the hundreds of investigations conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory in the areas of biology and biotechnology, physical sciences, and Earth and space science.
Research and technology investigations taking place aboard the space station benefit people on Earth and lay the groundwork for other agency deep space missions.
As part of NASA’s Artemis program, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring the world through discovery in a new Golden Age of innovation and exploration.
The Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to remain at the space station until mid-November when it will depart and return to Earth with time-critical research and cargo, splashing down off the coast of California.
Learn more about the International Space Station, its research, and crew, at:
https:www.nasa.gov/station
Joshua Finch / Jimi RussellHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1100joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov/james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Steven SiceloffKennedy Space Center, Fla.321-876-2468steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones / Joseph ZakrzewskiJohnson Space Center, Houston281-483-5111sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov/joseph.a.zakrzewski@nasa.gov