The planned re-enhancement maneuver for the International Space Station ended after just 5 seconds for currently unknown reasons.
Cargo ships docked at the International Space Station It regularly fires its bursts in short bursts to keep the orbiting laboratory at its cruising altitude. These vehicles are usually Russian Progress capsules, but on Monday (June 20) Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus vehicle was scheduled to complete a five-minute burn to determine if the capsule was regularly ready for the mission.
The engine began firing at 11:20 a.m. EDT (1520 GMT) but shut down after just five seconds, according to a NASA statement (Opens in a new tab). The agency noted that Northrop Grumman is still unsure of the cause of the miscarriage.
The agency stressed that the defect is not a problem for the seven astronauts who live and work on the International Space Station. “The crew of Expedition 67, which was not in any danger at all, continues their normal operational regime aboard the complex, which orbits about 260 miles. [418 kilometers] Above a country officials wrote.
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Today’s maneuver was originally scheduled for Saturday (June 18) but was postponed after the Progress capsule docked in the orbiting laboratory and performed a 4.5 minute boost on Thursday (June 16) to ensure this Avoid the station a piece of debris.
Scientists have estimated the debris is likely the remnants of Russia’s November 2021 anti-satellite test, which may have approached the station 0.5 miles (0.8 km) without the guard maneuver.
A Cygnus capsule, currently in orbit, arrived at the lab in February. The astronauts filled the spacecraft with trash ahead of its planned destruction in Earth’s atmosphere later that month. But before that, NASA wants to undertake a re-enhancement attempt, which should become standard practice for Cygnus rovers.
“NASA air traffic controllers and Northrop Grumman are reviewing the data from today’s experiment and will develop a plan for the next steps needed to further develop this enhanced capability as a standard service for NASA,” agency officials wrote in a statement today.
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