News

Space station getting delivery from Virginia for a change

Posted November 10, 2017 6:00 am

By MARCIA DUNN

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - The International Space Station is getting a delivery shipped from Virginia for a change.

Orbital ATK, one of NASA's chief suppliers, plans to launch the capsule Saturday morning from Wallops Island, aboard an unmanned Antares rocket.

It will be Orbital ATK's first supply run from its home turf in more than a year. The 7:37 a.m. launch should be visible as far north as Boston and as far south as Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, although the rising sun will make it tough to see.

The last time Orbital ATK sent up supplies, in the spring, it used another company's rocket in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The Cygnus capsule holds 7,400 pounds of cargo, including fresh fruit and vegetables for the station's six-man crew, and mealworms and micro clover for student experiments.

Orbital ATK's Antares rocket sits on the 0A launch pad at the NASA Wallops Island flight facility in Wallops Island, Va., Friday, Nov. 10, 2017. The rocket is carrying cargo to the International Space Station and is set to launch Saturday morning. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) The Associated Press

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