NASA SpaceX’s 32nd Commercial Resupply Services – YouTube
SpaceX’s next robotic resupply to the International Space Station will take place early Monday morning, April 21.
On Monday, a Falcon 9 rocket with an uncrewed Dragon capsule is scheduled to launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at Florida at 4:15 am EDT (0815 GMT). You can watch it live on Space.com or NASA.
Directly via the agencyCoverage begins at 3:55 am EDT (0755 GMT).
(Image credit: SpaceX).
This launch will kick-off the CRS-32 mission, named so because it will mark the 32nd flight SpaceX will perform under a contract for commercial resupply with NASA. According to NASA, Dragon is carrying about 6,700 pounds (3.040 kilograms).
“Along with food and essential equipment for the crew, Dragon is delivering a variety of experiments, including a demonstration of refined maneuvers for free-floating robots,” NASA officials have written
in a CRS-32 mission description. They added
“Dragon also carries an enhanced air quality monitoring system that could protect crew members on exploration missions to the moon and Mars, and two atomic clocks to examine fundamental physics concepts, such as relativity, and test worldwide synchronization of precision timepieces,” .
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Dragon, a robotic resupply craft that will return to Earth next month with a cargo of scientific experiments and gear, will splash down in the Pacific Ocean near the coast of California.
Dragon, the only robotic resupply vehicle currently in operation that can make such a return trip, is the only one capable of making this kind of return trip. The other two — Northrop Grumman Cygnus and Russia’s Progress vehicle – are designed to burn in Earth’s atmospheric at the end their missions.
is a Senior Spacewriter with Space.com who joined the team in 2010. He is a space writer who focuses on exoplanets and spaceflight, but also dabbles in space art. His book, “Out There,” about the search for extraterrestrial life was published on November 13, 2018. Michael was a wildlife biologist and herpetologist before becoming a science author. Michael holds a Ph.D. from the University of Sydney in Australia, a Bachelor’s degree from University of Arizona and a Graduate Certificate in Science Writing from University of California Santa Cruz. Follow Michael on Twitter to find out about his latest project.
