Cargo Dragon 2 will deliver approximately 3 tons of cargo.
The next launch of the Cargo Dragon 2 cargo spacecraft by SpaceX for the purpose of resupply on the International Space Station (ISS) is scheduled for June 7. This was announced on Friday on its website by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
“This will be the 25th commercial cargo delivery mission to the ISS under a NASA contract with SpaceX. The launch of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle from the Cape Canaveral cosmodrome (Florida) is scheduled for June 7 at 11:30 a.m. U.S. East Coast time. Docking with the ISS is scheduled for 5:51 p.m. East Coast time,” the agency noted.
Cargo Dragon 2 will deliver approximately 3 tons of cargo: supplies, equipment and materials for various experiments. It is assumed that the ship will stay in orbit for about a month before returning to Earth, landing in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Florida.
In particular, equipment for monitoring dust storms on the Earth’s surface will be sent to the station. Astronauts will have to install it on the outer hull of the ISS. Soil microorganisms will also be delivered into orbit: scientists want to see how they behave in zero gravity. In addition, the ship will bring materials and equipment to study the processes underlying the aging of the immune system, as well as to create a biopolymer composite that can be used instead of concrete.
Cargo to the station, in addition to SpaceX-made ships, is delivered from the American side under a contract with NASA by Cygnus ships of Northrop Grumman Corporation. However, when Cygnus returns to Earth, they burn up in the dense layers of the atmosphere along with the garbage that they take from the ISS.
