US space station delivery planned today after 8-month stoppage

Weather conditions remain iffy for the launch of a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V 401 rocket from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The redesigned Cygnus – along with the additional power supplied by the Atlas V rocket – is capable of carrying 7,700 pounds (3,500 kilograms) of cargo and scientific experiments to the space station.

“We are very proud to be back in this position of getting ready to launch supplies to the International Space Station again”, Frank Culbertson, president of Orbital ATK’s Space Systems Group, told a prelaunch news conference.

That’s because in 2014, an Orbital mission to the space station failed spectacularly after the refurbished Russian engine in its Antares rocket exploded.

Orbital plans another shipment via an Atlas in March, followed by the return of Antares in May with a new type of Russian-built engine.

CRS-4, also known as OA-4, is also the fourth contracted cargo resupply mission that Orbital ATK is conducting for NASA.

MARROW: an experiment led by researchers at the University of Ottawa, to study how microgravity affects bone marrow and its cells, to benefit not only the astronauts who inhabit the space station, but also those with limited mobility here on Earth. SpaceX will be launching an upgraded Falcon 9 rocket to the ISS on January 3.

Can private companies handle the responsibility of keeping the International Space Station resupplied? Ken has reported first hand from the Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, NASA Wallops, NASA Michoud/Stennis/Langley and on over 40 launches including 8 shuttle launches.

Forecasters put the odds of good weather at 60 percent for Thursday’s 5:55 p.m. ET launch attempt.

The craft will be carrying more than 7,000 pounds of science and research, crew supplies, and vehicle hardware when it arrives at the ISS on Sunday.

The first component of the space station was launched on November 20, 1998.

NASA briefly considered squeezing in a spare part to restore the space station to full power. Launch of the Atlas V is scheduled for Thursday evening.

Under the contracts, the companies aren’t required to re-fly a mission if it fails and they still receive all but 20% of the contract’s price per flight.

Though names like SpaceX and Blue Origin seem to hog all the commercial spaceflight spotlight, it would be a mistake to gloss over the other companies that are looking to make their mark on the industry.