Spaceflight Insider

News Archive / Tagged: S.S. Alan Poindexter

  • A tale of fire: S.S. Alan Poindexter successfully completes OA-5 mission

    Heather SmithNovember 28th, 2016

    The S.S. Alan Poindexter Cygnus spacecraft successfully completed re-entry on Nov. 27 over the Pacific Ocean east of New Zealand following a month-long stay at the International Space Station. The mission known as OA-5 marked Orbital ATK’s return to flight operations at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Wallops Island, Virginia.

  • Cygnus departs ISS, prepares for SAFFIRE experiment

    Derek RichardsonNovember 21st, 2016

    After spending a month attached to the International Space Station, Orbital ATK’s OA-5 Cygnus was detached and released by the robotic Canadarm2 in the morning hours of Nov. 21.

  • Reflections on the launch of OA-5: Remembering

    Jason RhianOctober 30th, 2016

    ABOVE PHILADELPHIA, Penn. — It was a trip meant to last about four days. When all was said and done, nine had elapsed. As most of us are aware, travel in the post-9-11 world is not what one would describe as “fun", and covering the return-to-flight of Antares had been an interesting challenge.

  • Reflections on the launch of OA-5: Waiting

    Jason RhianOctober 25th, 2016

    CHINCOTEAGUE, Va. — The sleepy seaside village of Chincoteague only has a population of about 3,000 and is generally a quiet restful place best known for the wild ponies who reside in the wetlands surrounding NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility. The island’s peaceful nature has been interrupted over the course of the past three years with some fairly dramatic activity.

  • Orbital ATK’s OA-5 Cygnus spacecraft arrives at the ISS

    Curt GodwinOctober 23rd, 2016

    Nearly a week after its launch, Orbital ATK's Cygnus spacecraft berthed with the International Space Station (ISS) on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016, at 10:53 a.m. EDT (14:53 GMT), 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the Indian Ocean. The capsule is now attached to the nadir (Earth-facing) port on the station's Unity module.

  • SFI Video: Launch of Antares 230 with S.S. Alan Poindexter Cygnus spacecraft

    Jason RhianOctober 22nd, 2016

    WALLOPS FLIGHT FACILITY, Va. — With mission managers pushing the flight to the very close of a five-minute long launch window, Orbital ATK and NASA launched an Antares 230 rocket from MARS' Pad 0A at 7;45 p.m. EDT (23:45 GMT) on Oct. 17, 2016. SFI captured the entire event on video.

  • Antares lights up Virginian night skies in return-to-flight OA-5 mission

    SpaceFlight InsiderOctober 18th, 2016

    WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. — NASA and Orbital ATK returned the Antares launch vehicle to service on Monday, Oct. 17, with its payload of 5,100 lbs (2,313 kg) of cargo bound for the International Space Station. The rocket lifted off at 7:45 p.m. EDT from Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

  • With little damage to tracking station, OA-5 set to launch Sunday

    Jason RhianOctober 15th, 2016

    WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. — Dulles, Virginia-based Orbital ATK and NASA are preparing to launch the first of their upgraded Antares-230 rockets from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The mission will mark the return-to-flight of Antares, but it has to have a critical asset survive Mother Nature first before it can take off on Sunday, Oct. 16.