MISSION NAME
Cygnus CRS OA-9 (S.S. J.R. Thompson)
Status
Success
DATE
21 MAY 2018
LAUNCH PROVIDER
Orbital ATK
Launch Pad
Launch Area 0 A
Description
This is the tenth planned flight of the Orbital ATK's unmanned resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its ninth flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA.
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.