Interactive video lesson plan for: U.S. Commerical Cargo Ship Departs the Space Station

The Orbital/ATK Cygnus cargo ship was released from the International Space Station June 4, following a 44-day stay at the complex in which approximately 7,600 pounds of supplies and scientific experiments were delivered to the station’s residents. NASA Flight Engineers Jack Fischer and Peggy Whitson were at the controls of the Canadarm2 robotic arm to release Cygnus after it was unbolted from the Earth-facing port of the Unity module. Dubbed the “SS John Glenn” after the iconic Mercury and shuttle astronaut and U.S. Senator from Ohio, Cygnus will remain in orbit for a week in support of the SAFFIRE experiment and the deployment of four small Nanoracks satellites before Orbital ATK flight controllers send commands June 11 to deorbit the spacecraft for its reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere, where it will burn up over the Pacific Ocean.

Tagged under: NASA,Orbital/ATK Cygnus,International Space Station,Jack Fischer,Peggy Whitson