Space Travel News  
Japan Set To Launch Space Freighter To ISS On Sept. 10

Unlike the fully-automated cargo ships built by Russia and Europe, which can dock at the station with the use of the Kurs laser-guided docking system, designed and built by Russia's Energia corporation, the HTV-1 will be pulled to the ISS by a robotic arm operated by the ISS crew.
by Staff Writers
Moscow, Russia (RIA Novosti) Sep 08, 2009
Japan will launch its first domestic cargo spaceship to the International Space Station ISS on September 10, a Russian space official said on Monday.

The spacecraft was built by Japan's space agency JAXA, and will lift off on board the country's new H-2B rocket. It will deliver about 4.5 metric tons of scientific equipment to the orbital station.

"The launch of the Japanese H-2B carrier rocket with the HTV-1 unmanned cargo spacecraft is scheduled for September 10, 2009 [at 17.01 GMT] from the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan," an official from Russia's Mission Control said, adding that the freighter is expected to dock with the ISS on September 17.

The spacecraft is a solar-powered cylinder about 10 meters long and 4.4 meters wide. It can haul up to 6 tons of cargo, but will be loaded with less cargo on its maiden flight.

JAXA and NASA officials earlier said the Japanese freighters "will be vital to support the space station's six-person crew once NASA's space shuttle fleet retires in the next year or so."

Russian and European unmanned freighters and the U.S. space shuttles have so far performed the task of bringing vital supplies and equipment to the orbital station.

Unlike the fully-automated cargo ships built by Russia and Europe, which can dock at the station with the use of the Kurs laser-guided docking system, designed and built by Russia's Energia corporation, the HTV-1 will be pulled to the ISS by a robotic arm operated by the ISS crew.

JAXA said it has spent about $680 million since 1997 to develop the HTV spacecraft.

The $220-million vehicle is expected to be "buried" in southern Pacific after spending a month docked with the ISS.

Source: RIA Novosti

Share This Article With Planet Earth
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit
YahooMyWebYahooMyWeb GoogleGoogle FacebookFacebook



Related Links
JAXA
Station at NASA
Station and More at Roscosmos
S.P. Korolev RSC Energia
Watch NASA TV via Space.TV
Space Station News at Space-Travel.Com



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


Astronauts install coolant tank at space station
Washington (AFP) Sept 3, 2009
A Swedish astronaut and his US colleague floated out of shuttle Discovery on Thursday to conduct the mission's second spacewalk at the International Space Station, NASA said. The pair exited the shuttle over China at 1012 GMT for an excursion expected to last 6.5-hours, after the US space agency determined that space debris drifting towards the shuttle and ISS posed no threat. Swede Chri ... read more







The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2009 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement