SpaceX is about to launch Northrop Grumman ’s Cygnus cargo ship to the International Space Station ( ISS ) for the first time , and you may watch the case live online .
The twentieth Commercial Resupply Services ( NG-20 ) missionary station is set to get underway from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday , January 30 . Scroll down for full details on how to follow .
The Cygnus will hold an array of science experiments , food , and other essential supplies for the crew aboard the ISS .
The spacecraft will abide docked at the station for about six month . Its engines could be kindle up occasionally to nudge the ISS back to a recommended height should it drift out of position at any time . It ’ll also steadily fulfill up with crank from the orbital deftness before undock and burning up during reentry into Earth ’s atmosphere .
As the charge name suggests , this is the twentieth fourth dimension for a Cygnus fomite to head to place , but it ’s the first time hitching a drive on a SpaceX rocket . Up to now , the Cygnus has always flown on Northrop Grumman ’s Antares rocket , which uses Russian and Ukrainian parts . Not surprisingly , the supply chains have been disrupted by the ongoing conflict following Russia ’s invasion of its neighbour , a situation that has led to the replacement to SpaceX.
The last time a Cygnus fly to the ISS aboard an Antares roquette was in August last year .
This will be the 10th flight of SpaceX ’s first - stage Falcon 9 booster , whichpreviously launched Crew-5 , GPS III Space Vehicle 06 , Inmarsat I6 - F2 , CRS-28 , Intelsat G-37 , and four Starlink missions .
How to watch
SpaceX will use its Falcon 9 rocket to launch Northrop Grumman ’s twentieth Commercial Resupply Services foreign mission ( NG-20 ) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida .
The company aims to launch the Cygnus spacecraft at 12:07 p.m. ET on Tuesday , January 30 , with a backup launching chance usable at 1:18 a.m. ET on Thursday , February 1 .
A live webcast of the mission will start around 15 minutes before liftoff . you’re able to watch it onSpaceX ’s websiteoron X , formerly Twitter .
NASA will know - streamthe Cygnus space vehicle ’s arriver at the ISS , with coverage beginning at 2:45 a.m. ET on Thursday , February 1 .
What to expect
The live - stream coverage will include the Falcon 9 blast off from the launchpad , with remote cameras tracking the projectile as it heads quickly to orbit . Viewers will also be able to delight a rocket’s - centre view of the flight , which , after several minutes , will see the first degree of the skyrocket separating from the upper stagecoach carrying the spacecraft . On Thursday , NASA will show the Cygnus on its approach to the ISS , a process that will culminate with the all-important docking procedure .
About eight moment after launch , the first phase will then arrive in to land close to the launch site at Kennedy , paving the way for another flight using the same roquette part .
