Orbital Plans to Develop Cygnus-Based Crew CapsuleAmy Klamper September 11, 2009
WASHINGTON — Dulles, Va.-based Orbital Sciences Corp. is throwing its hat into NASA’s commercial-crew transport ring with plans to develop a crew capsule based on the company’s Cygnus cargo module, according to industry sources.
https://spacenews.com/orbital-plans-develop-cygnus-based-crew-capsule/Mitsubishi To Supply Orbital With Electronics for CygnusSpaceNews Staff October 26, 2009
Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Electric Corp. said Oct. 22 it had concluded a $66 million deal with Dulles, Va.-based Orbital Sciences Corp. to supply Proximity Link System components that will guide Orbital’s unmanned Cygnus cargo vehicle to the international space station.
The Proximity Link System components were originally developed for Japan’s automated H-2 Transfer Vehicle, which made its first cargo run to the space station in September.
https://spacenews.com/mitsubishi-supply-orbital-electronics-cygnus/Dutch Space To Build Solar Arrays for CygnusPeter B. de Selding November 12, 2009
PARIS — Dutch Space B.V. of the Netherlands will provide solar arrays for nine Orbital Sciences’ Cygnus unmanned cargo ferries to supply the international space station under a contract valued at more than $35 million, Dutch Space announced Nov. 12.
The contract highlights the trans-Atlantic design of Cygnus, whose exterior shell is being built by Thales Alenia Space of Turin, Italy. Dutch Space also provides solar arrays for Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicle, which has flown once and is scheduled to make a second flight to the space station in November 2010.
https://spacenews.com/dutch-space-build-solar-arrays-cygnus/1st Cygnus Cargo Module Shipped to Orbital SciencesSpaceNews Staff June 6, 2011
Thales Alenia Space of France and Italy announced May 30 it had shipped the first Cygnus space station cargo transport module to Orbital Sciences Corp. for a planned launch aboard Orbital’s Taurus 2 rocket in December from the new Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
Thales Alenia Space’s Turin, Italy, plant contracted with Dulles, Va.-based Orbital in June 2009 to deliver nine Cygnus pressurized cargo modules, starting with a standard version capable of carrying 2,000 kilograms of payload. The final five deliveries will be of the enhanced Cygnus version, which can carry 2,700 kilograms of cargo.
https://spacenews.com/1st-cygnus-cargo-module-shipped-orbital-sciences/Orbital’s Cygnus Cargo Tug Arrives at Wallops IslandSpaceNews Staff August 29, 2011
Orbital Sciences Corp.’s first Cygnus pressurized cargo module arrived Aug. 24 at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia in preparation for a 2012 demonstration launch to the international space station.
“This is one more important step in our partnership with U.S. private industry to build safe, reliable and cost effective cargo transportation systems,” Phillip McAlister, NASA’s acting director of commercial spaceflight development, said in a joint statement issued by NASA and Orbital Sciences.
https://spacenews.com/orbitals-cygnus-cargo-tug-arrives-wallops-island/Orbital Revises Schedule for Taurus 2 and Cygnus DebutsPeter B. de Selding October 21, 2011
The Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops Island, Virginia. Credit: Orbital ATKPARIS — Satellite and rocket builder Orbital Sciences said Oct. 20 the inaugural launch of its Taurus 2 rocket and the vehicle’s delivery of supplies to the international space station have been postponed again, by between two and three months, following delays in making the rocket’s launch base ready for operations.
The Wallops Island, Va., launch base, being developed by the Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority, will not be completed before the week of Oct. 24, with final certification and handoff to Orbital expected in early January, the company said.
https://spacenews.com/orbital-revises-schedule-taurus-2-and-cygnus-debuts/Orbital Orders Additional Battery Sets for CygnusSpaceNews Staff July 23, 2012
Dulles, Va.-based spacecraft and rocket builder Orbital Sciences Corp. ordered five more flight sets of batteries for its Cygnus space station resupply vehicle from GS Yuasa Lithium Power Inc. (GYLP), the Roswell, Ga.-based battery maker said in a July 16 press release. The LSE190 rechargeable lithium ion batteries Orbital ordered will be used for missions four through eight of the NASA Commercial Resupply Services contract. GYLP delivered batteries in 2011 for Orbital’s upcoming Cygnus demonstration flight and first three Cargo Resupply Services missions.
https://spacenews.com/orbital-orders-additional-battery-sets-cygnus/Cygnus on Deck after Successful Antares DebutDan Leone April 24, 2013
WASHINGTON — With the inaugural launch of its Antares medium-lift rocket in the books, Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., is now preparing for another maiden flight: that of the Cygnus space freighter the company developed with help from NASA.
The first Cygnus mission is tentatively scheduled for June or July, and its successful completion would clear the way for Orbital to start flying 20,000 kilograms of cargo to the international space station for NASA under an eight-flight, $1.9 billion contract signed in 2008.
https://spacenews.com/35030cygnus-on-deck-after-successful-antares-debut/Orbital’s Cygnus Cargo Tug Arrives at Wallops IslandPeter B. de Selding July 18, 2013
GLASGOW, Scotland — Thales Alenia Space of Italy has delivered the second of nine pressurized cargo-supply modules for the international space station to customer Orbital Sciences Corp.’s Wallops Island, Va., facility, Thales Alenia Space announced July 18.
The initial unit was delivered to Orbital in 2011. Dulles, Va.-based Orbital is preparing the launch of the unit, which Orbital calls the Cygnus vehicle, in September aboard an Orbital-built Antares rocket under Orbital’s Commercial Orbital Transportation Services demonstration agreement with NASA. Orbital must complete the demonstration before its cleared to begin making regular cargo runs under an eight-flight, $1.9 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract NASA awarded the company in 2008.
https://spacenews.com/36322orbitals-cygnus-cargo-tug-arrives-at-wallops-island/Ousted from First Orion Flight, Circular ATK Solar Arrays Still Set To Power CygnusDan Leone August 1, 2013
WASHINGTON — Orbital Sciences Corp.’s Cygnus space tug will head to the international space station (ISS) in September powered by a pair of rectangular solar arrays from Dutch Space, but by the time the tug makes its fifth flight to the orbital outpost, it will be sporting a distinctive pair of circular arrays ATK Aerospace developed for NASA’s Orion deep-space crew capsule.
Loosely scheduled for 2014 or 2015, Orbital’s fifth space station resupply mission coincides with the introduction of an enhanced version of Cygnus that can carry as much as 2,700 kilograms, up from the original 2,000 kilograms, according to Orbital spokesman Barron Beneski.
https://spacenews.com/36576ousted-from-first-orion-flight-circular-atk-solar-arrays-still-set-to-power/LIVE | Orbital Sciences Antares/Cygnus Launch to ISSBrian Berger September 18, 2013
https://spacenews.com/37282live-orbital-sciences-antarescygnus-launch-to-iss/Cygnus on Way to Station, Orbital Sciences on Way to Collecting From NASADan Leone September 23, 2013
WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. — Orbital Sciences Corp. launched its Cygnus cargo capsule toward the international space station (ISS) aboard the Antares rocket Sept. 18, marking the start of a demonstration delivery mission that, if successful, will clear the way for the Dulles, Va., company to start flying off a $1.9 billion NASA contract.
In its maiden flight, Cygnus separated cleanly from the second stage of Antares — which has now flown twice, counting a demo launch in April — at about 11:08 a.m. EDT, 10 minutes after liftoff from Pad 0A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, a state-operated facility at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility here.
https://spacenews.com/37284cygnus-on-way-to-station-orbital-sciences-on-way-to-collecting-from-nasa/Crew Arrival, Communications Glitch Further Delay Cygnus BerthingDan Leone September 23, 2013
WASHINGTON — Ceding priority to a Soyuz spacecraft scheduled to fly three crew members to the international space station Sept. 25, Orbital Sciences Corp. has postponed the berthing of its Cygnus spacecraft with the outpost until Sept. 28 at the earliest.
Cygnus, which has been in space since Sept. 18, was originally scheduled to berth with the station Sept. 22, but a miscommunication between the spacecraft and the station prompted the company and NASA to reschedule Cygnus’ arrival for Sept. 24. However, on the morning of Sept. 23, Orbital wrote on its website that Cygnus’ arrival would again be delayed to make room for an inbound Soyuz crew capsule.
https://spacenews.com/37348crew-arrival-communications-glitch-further-delay-cygnus-berthing/First Cygnus Capsule Arrives at Space StationWarren Ferster September 27, 2013
WASHINGTON — Following a weeklong delay, Orbital Sciences Corp.’s first Cygnus cargo module successfully berthed with the international space station (ISS), marking a critical milestone in the company’s efforts to field a commercial logistics system for the orbital outpost.
In its first demonstration flight, Cygnus was launched Sept. 18 atop Orbital’s Antares rocket, which was making only its second flight, from the Mid Atlantic Regional Spaceport on NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility, Va. The capsule arrived at the station following a series of orbit-raising maneuvers and tests and was grappled by the outpost’s crew-operated robotic arm.
https://spacenews.com/37413first-cygnus-capsule-arrives-at-space-station/Cygnus Payloads Get Power Units from Andrews SpaceSpaceNews Editor October 7, 2013
Andrews Space, a Tukwila, Wash.-based manufacturer of spacecraft components and small satellites, delivered four power supply units that will provide electricity for payloads carried by the Cygnus spacecraft Orbital Sciences Corp. plans to use for its first contracted cargo run to the international space station (ISS).
Known as Cargo Module Power Units, each of the Andrews Space parts can “provide up to 150 Watts of [28-volt direct current] payload power to mid-deck locker payloads destined for the International Space Station aboard the Cygnus cargo vehicle,” the company wrote in a press release. “These units will be used on Orbital’s first operational cargo resupply mission scheduled for later this year.”
https://spacenews.com/37591cygnus-payloads-get-power-units-from-andrews-space/Editorial | Orbital Makes Good with CygnusSpaceNews October 7, 2013
All but lost amid the latest outbreak of political insanity in Washington was an important milestone in NASA’s effort to commercialize human spaceflight and related operations in low Earth orbit: the Sept. 29 berthing of Orbital Sciences Corp.’s Cygnus cargo capsule with the international space station.
The accomplishment stands out in stark contrast to the entrenched fecklessness of the U.S. Congress, in particular the House of Representatives, which orchestrated a paralyzing federal government shutdown that has hit NASA especially hard. More than 90 percent of the space agency’s 18,000-strong workforce has been forced on unpaid furlough.
https://spacenews.com/37595editorial-orbital-makes-good-with-cygnus/Cygnus Mission Set to Wrap Up Oct. 23; Shutdown Nonissue for Virginia SpaceportDan Leone October 10, 2013 Updated at 10:40 a.m. EDT
WASHINGTON — Orbital Sciences Corp.’s Cygnus cargo capsule will wrap up its first mission to the international space station (ISS) Oct. 23, when the expendable spacecraft is set to re-enter the atmosphere and burn up along with a load of trash.
Cygnus was launched Sept. 18 from Pad 0A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS), a state-run facility located at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Va. The craft has been berthed with the station’s Harmony node since Sept. 29 and will detach from the orbital outpost Oct. 22, Orbital said in an Oct. 11 online post.
https://spacenews.com/37660cygnus-mission-set-to-wrap-up-oct-23-shutdown-nonissue-for-virginia/Orbital Moves Cygnus Re-entry Up a Day, Prepares for Another Cargo Run in DecemberDan Leone October 16, 2013
WASHINGTON — Orbital Sciences Corp. is planning to end its first cargo delivery mission to the international space station a little early, with the company’s now-trash-filled Cygnus spacecraft set for destructive re-entry over the Pacific Ocean Oct. 23, a spokesman said.
“It used to be Oct. 24, but in looking at the orbital mechanics of release, the team updated their burn schedule and Oct. 24 became Oct. 23,” Orbital spokesman Barron Beneski said in a phone interview Oct. 16.
https://spacenews.com/37729orbital-moves-cygnus-re-entry-up-a-day-prepares-for-another-cargo-run-in/Orbital’s Cygnus Concludes First ISS Cargo RunDan Leone October 23, 2013
WASHINGTON — Orbital Sciences Corp. wrapped up its 35-day cargo delivery and disposal mission to the international space station (ISS) Oct. 23 when its Cygnus space capsule, which was unberthed from the outpost the day before, burned up as planned after re-entering the atmosphere over the Pacific Ocean.
“We have lost the signal from Cygnus,” Orbital wrote in a Twitter message at 2:22 p.m EDT Oct. 23. “Reentry accomplished.”
https://spacenews.com/37834orbitals-cygnus-concludes-first-iss-cargo-run/VIDEO | Orbital’s Cygnus Completes MissionSpaceNews Editor October 24, 2013
https://spacenews.com/video-orbitals-cygnus-completes-mission/Orbital Mates Cygnus to Rocket Ahead of First Contracted Cargo LaunchDan Leone December 11, 2013
WASHINGTON — Orbital Sciences Corp. mated its Cygnus space capsule to its Antares rocket in preparation for the first of eight planned cargo delivery missions to the international space station through 2016.
The scheduled Dec. 18 launch, from a state-owned launch pad at NASA’s Wallops Island Flight Faculty on Wallops Island, Va., will be the third for Antares and the second for Cygnus, which delivered its first cache of cargo to the station in a Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) demonstration mission that wrapped up in October.
https://spacenews.com/38601orbital-mates-cygnus-to-rocket-ahead-of-first-contracted-cargo-launch/