Space Station Gets a Late but Important Delivery

A cargo ship finally reached the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, a day behind schedule. The Cygnus XL, built by Northrop Grumman, brought over 5 tons of supplies and experiments to the seven astronauts living in space. Astronaut Jonny Kim used the station's robotic arm to grab the Cygnus at 7:24 am EDT. After that, the arm moved the spacecraft to a docking port, and bolts secured it in place. The Cygnus XL will stay at the ISS for up to six months. During this time, astronauts will unload the cargo and fill it with trash. Later, the Cygnus will leave the station and burn up over the Pacific Ocean. The mission started on Sunday with a successful launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. However, the Cygnus faced a problem on Tuesday. Its main engine shut down too early during two maneuvers to adjust its path to the ISS. NASA announced that the issue would delay the arrival. Engineers found that the early shutdown was caused by the spacecraft's software, which was designed to protect it from potential problems. The engine itself worked fine. After updating the software, the Cygnus flew close enough to the ISS for Kim to capture it with the robotic arm. This mission is the first flight of the upgraded Cygnus XL. It has a larger cargo module, allowing it to carry 33 percent more supplies. The Cygnus brought food, oxygen, nitrogen, and spare parts for the station's urine processor. It also delivered a new navigation aid to help future spacecraft find the ISS. The Cygnus XL also carried research equipment. One experiment will study how to make semiconductor crystals in space. Another will test a new way to keep cryogenic propellants cold during long space trips.