LAUNCH MISSION
NGSS Antares 230 Cygnus CRS NG-11 (S.S. Roger Chaffee)
Launch Pad
Launch Area 0 A
Description
This is the 12th planned flight of the Orbital ATK's uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its 11th flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA. Northrop Grumman named the vehicle after Apollo 1 astronaut Roger Chaffee.
Antares 230
Rocket Description
Antares known during early development as Taurus II, is an expendable launch system developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation (now part of Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems after Northrop Grumman acquired Orbital ATK) and the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau to launch the Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station as part of NASA's COTS and CRS programs. Able to launch payloads heavier than 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) into low-Earth orbit, Antares is the largest rocket operated by Orbital ATK. Antares launches from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport and made its inaugural flight on April 21, 2013.