SpaceX Dragon cargo ship splashes into Pacific

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  March 26, 2013: The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft after it was detached from the International Space Station at 4:10 a.m. The Dragon is expected to splash down in the eastern Pacific ocean approximatel 246 miles off the coast of Baja Calif. later this morning.AP Photo/NASA

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  March 26, 2013: The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft as it is backed away from the International Space Station.AP Photo/NASA

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  March 26, 2013: The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft after it was detached from the International Space Station at 4:10 a.m. EDT.AP Photo/NASA

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  March 26, 2013: The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft after it was detached from the International Space Station.AP Photo/NASA

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  March 26, 2013: The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft as it is backed away from the International Space Station's Canadarm2 robotic arm on it's return to earth.AP Photo/NASA

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. –  A privately owned cargo ship left the International Space Station with a full science load Tuesday and aimed for a splashdown in the Pacific.

Astronauts released the unmanned SpaceX capsule, named Dragon, from the end of the space station's giant robot arm. The parting occurred 250 miles over the South Pacific and was a poignant moment for the three space station residents, who had helped to snare the Dragon three weeks earlier.

"Sad to see the Dragon go," astronaut Thomas Marshburn told Mission Control. "Performed her job beautifully. Heading back to her lair. Wish her all the best for the splashdown today."

The Dragon was due to splash down off the Baja California coast 5 1/2 hours after its space station departure. It will be transported by ship to Los Angeles and then by truck to the SpaceX company's plant in McGregor, Texas.

Within hours, NASA will retrieve the science samples meticulously collected over the weeks and months by space station astronauts, as well as experiments that flew up with Dragon, such as flowering weeds and mouse stem cells. Old space station equipment and other items will be removed by SpaceX in McGregor. In all, more than 1 ton of gear was loaded into the capsule.

Dragon's return to Earth was delayed one day by bad weather in the splashdown zone.

The California-based SpaceX company launched the Dragon from Cape Canaveral, Fla., at the beginning of March. Mechanical trouble caused a one-day postponement in Dragon's arrival at the space station. SpaceX flight controllers at company headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif., managed to fix the problem within hours.

SpaceX -- Space Exploration Technologies Corp. -- is run by billionaire Elon Musk, who made his fortune as a co-creator of PayPal. He also owns the electric car maker Tesla Motors.

NASA is paying SpaceX to resupply the space station. This was the second flight of a Dragon to the orbiting outpost under the $1.6 billion contract, and the third delivery mission altogether for SpaceX. The next flight is slated for late fall.

A competitor, Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., plans a test flight of its Antares rocket and a dummy payload next month. That launch will be conducted from Wallops Island, Va.

Russia, Japan and Europe also periodically send up supplies, but SpaceX has the only craft capable of returning goods. All the others burn up upon re-entry.

Three astronauts are aboard the space station right now. They will be joined by three more following Thursday's Soyuz launch from Kazakhstan.

With its space shuttles now museum pieces, NASA is paying Russia to launch U.S. astronauts until SpaceX or another American company comes up with spaceships than can safely fly crews. Musk anticipates that happening by 2015.

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SpaceX Dragon capsule to miss berthing date at space station after thruster issue

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. –  Blast off! SpaceX's Falcon rocket launched Friday at 10:10 a.m. ET from Cape Canaveral on a resupply run to the International Space Station.

The unmanned rocket is owned by the SpaceX company, and carried the company's Dragon capsule filled with more than a ton of space station supplies and experiments -- rather than the chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream carried aboard a previous mission. This time, Dragon's freezers are going up filled with mouse stem cells, protein crystals and other research items. 

SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said snacks straight from the orchard of an employee's father are on board -- and not just apples.

'[The cargo is] a little bit healthier, I think, than the one that NASA sent last time.'

- SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell

"It's a little bit healthier, I think, than the one that NASA sent last time," she told reporters on the eve of the flight.

This will be the third space station visit for SpaceX, or more formally Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the creation of Elon Musk of PayPal and Tesla electric carmaker fame.

NASA is paying the company to supply the orbiting lab; the contract is worth $1.6 billion for 12 delivery runs.

The Dragon should arrive at the space station on Saturday morning. The six-member station crew will use the station's robot arm to grab the Dragon and attach it to the orbiting complex.

A variety of plant life is going up, including 640 seeds of mouse-ear cress, a small flowering weed used in research. Other experiments involve paint; high school students want to see how it will adhere and dry in space.

Russia, Europe and Japan also provide delivery services to the space station, but none of those cargo craft can return goods like the SpaceX Dragon. This latest Dragon will spend more than three weeks at the space station before departing and parachuting into the Pacific with a full load of medical specimens, fish, plants and old equipment.

NASA's shuttles used to be the main haulers up and down, but retired two years ago.

Orbital Sciences Corp., a cargo-flying competitor, hopes to launch its first orbital test flight from Wallops Island, Virginia, in April, followed by an actual demo mission to the space station in early summer.

SpaceX, based in Hawthorne, California, is working to modify its Dragon capsules to transport astronauts to the station in another few years. A handful of U.S. companies are vying for the job.

Until then, NASA is buying seats for its astronauts on Russian Soyuz rockets to get to the station.

The company said it has resolved the problem that caused one of the nine first-stage engines to shut down prematurely shortly after liftoff last October. A private Orbcomm satellite that was also on the rocket ended up in a lower-than-desired orbit and burned up upon re-entry.

A flaw in the engine jacket was to blame, Shotwell said, declining to provide further details.

The main payload, the Dragon capsule, had no trouble reaching the space station; it was even a little early.

Shotwell stressed that the rocket is built to withstand an engine loss, "and though you never necessarily want to see it happen, it's nice that we've demonstrated the vehicle as it was designed."

NASA space station program manager Mike Suffredini said he's satisfied with the engineering analysis by SpaceX.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

View the original article here

SpaceX Dragon capsule to miss berthing date at space station after thruster issue

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. –  A private rocket is poised to blast off Friday on a supply run to the International Space Station.

The unmanned Falcon rocket is owned by the SpaceX company. The Dragon capsule on board is filled with more than a ton of space station supplies and experiments.

Good weather is forecast for the 10:10 a.m. liftoff from Cape Canaveral, Fla. It's a one-second launch window.

There won't be any ice cream, though, for the six-man station crew. The freezers going up are filled with mouse stem cells, protein crystals and other research items. On the previous Dragon delivery in October, chocolate-vanilla swirl was tucked inside.

SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said snacks straight from the orchard of an employee's father are on board -- and not just apples.

"It's a little bit healthier, I think, than the one that NASA sent last time," she told reporters on the eve of the flight.

Forecasters put the odds of good weather at 80 percent. Launch time is 10:10 a.m.

This will be the third space station visit for SpaceX, or more formally Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the creation of Elon Musk of PayPal and Tesla electric carmaker fame.

NASA is paying the company to supply the orbiting lab; the contract is worth $1.6 billion for 12 delivery runs.

If launched Friday, the Dragon should arrive at the space station on Saturday morning. Astronauts will use the station's robot arm to grab the Dragon and attach it to the orbiting complex.

A variety of plant life is going up, including 640 seeds of mouse-ear cress, a small flowering weed used in research. Other experiments involve paint; high school students want to see how it will adhere and dry in space.

Russia, Europe and Japan also provide delivery services to the space station, but none of those cargo craft can return goods like the SpaceX Dragon. This latest Dragon will spend more than three weeks at the space station before departing and parachuting into the Pacific with a full load of medical specimens, fish, plants and old equipment.

NASA's shuttles used to be the main haulers up and down, but retired two years ago.

Orbital Sciences Corp., a cargo-flying competitor, hopes to launch its first orbital test flight from Wallops Island, Virginia, in April, followed by an actual demo mission to the space station in early summer.

SpaceX, based in Hawthorne, California, is working to modify its Dragon capsules to transport astronauts to the station in another few years. A handful of U.S. companies are vying for the job.

Until then, NASA is buying seats for its astronauts on Russian Soyuz rockets to get to the station.

As is his custom, Musk will monitor the launch from SpaceX Mission Control in California.

The company said it has resolved the problem that caused one of the nine first-stage engines to shut down prematurely shortly after liftoff last October. A private Orbcomm satellite that was also on the rocket ended up in a lower-than-desired orbit and burned up upon re-entry.

A flaw in the engine jacket was to blame, Shotwell said, declining to provide further details.

The main payload, the Dragon capsule, had no trouble reaching the space station; it was even a little early.

Shotwell stressed that the rocket is built to withstand an engine loss, "and though you never necessarily want to see it happen, it's nice that we've demonstrated the vehicle as it was designed."

NASA space station program manager Mike Suffredini said he's satisfied with the engineering analysis by SpaceX.

This Falcon is not carrying a commercial satellite.

View the original article here