.jpg) S.S.Ellison Onizuka on arrival at the ISS | |
| Names | CRS NG-16 CRS OA-16 (2016–2018) |
|---|---|
| Mission type | ISS resupply |
| Operator | Northrop Grumman |
| COSPAR ID | 2021-072A |
| SATCATno. | 49064 |
| Website | Cygnus NG-16 |
| Mission duration | 126 days, 8 hours, 23 minutes |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | S.S.Ellison Onizuka |
| Spacecraft type | Enhanced Cygnus |
| Manufacturer |
|
| Launch mass | 8,041 kg (17,727 lb) |
| Payload mass | 3,723 kg (8,208 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 10 August 2021, 22:01:05 (2021-08-10UTC22:01:05Z) UTC (6:01:05 pm EDT) |
| Rocket | Antares 230+ |
| Launch site | MARS,Pad 0A |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Deorbited |
| Decay date | 15 December 2021, 06:25 (2021-12-15UTC06:26Z) UTC |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Inclination | 51.66° |
| Berthing atISS | |
| Berthing port | Unitynadir |
| RMS capture | 12 August 2021, 10:07 UTC |
| Berthing date | 12 August 2021, 13:42 UTC |
| Unberthing date | 20 November 2021, 13:40 UTC |
| RMS release | 20 November 2021, 16:01 UTC |
| Time berthed | 99 days, 23 hours, 58 minutes |
| Cargo | |
| Mass | 3,723 kg (8,208 lb) |
| Pressurised | 3,675 kg (8,102 lb) |
| Unpressurised | 48 kg (106 lb) |
 NASA mission patch | |
NG-16,[1][2] previously known asOA-16, was the sixteenth flight of theNorthrop Grummanrobotic resupply spacecraftCygnus and its fifteenth flight to theInternational Space Station (ISS) under theCommercial Resupply Services (CRS-2) contract withNASA. The mission was launched on 10 August 2021 at 22:01:05UTC, for a (planned) 90-day mission at the ISS.[3][4] This was the fifth launch of Cygnus under theCRS-2 contract.[5][6]
Orbital ATK (nowNorthrop Grumman Innovation Systems) and NASA jointly developed a new space transportation system to provide commercial cargo resupply services to the International Space Station (ISS). Under theCommercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, Orbital ATK designed, acquired, built, and assembled these components:Antares, a medium-class launch vehicle;Cygnus, an advanced spacecraft using aPressurized Cargo Module (PCM) provided by industrial partnerThales Alenia Space and a Service Module based on the OrbitalGEOStarsatellite bus.[7]
NG-16 was the fifth Cygnus mission under theCommercial Resupply Services-2 contract. Production and integration of Cygnus spacecraft are performed inDulles, Virginia. The Cygnus service module is mated with the pressurized cargo module at the launch site, and mission operations are conducted from control centers in Dulles, Virginia andHouston, Texas.[7]
This was the eleventh flight of the Enhanced Cygnus.[8][6] Northrop Grumman named this spacecraft afterEllison Onizuka, the first Asian American astronaut.[1]
The Cygnus spacecraft was loaded with 3,723 kg (8,208 lb) of research, hardware, and crew supplies.[3][9]
The SEOPS Slingshot Deployment System delivered CubeSats to a 500 km (310 mi) orbit, following un-berthing from the ISS in late 2021.[10]
The 4-Bed Carbon Dioxide Scrubber, a next-generation air filtration unit developed and built by NASA'sMarshall Space Flight Center, was aboard Cygnus NG-16.[11]
NASA Glenn Research Center:[12]
On 18 November 2021,SPDM/Dextre grappled STP-H6 fromExPRESS-3 and mounted it onto the external payload attach device on the hull.[16] At 16:01 UTC on 20 November 2021, flight controllers on the ground sent commands to release the Northrop Grumman Cygnus spacecraft from theCanadarm2 robotic arm after earlier detaching Cygnus NG-16 from the Earth-facing port of the Unity module. At the time of release, the station was flying about 420 km (260 mi) over theSouth Pacific Ocean. The Cygnus spacecraft successfully departed the International Space Station more than three months after arriving at the space station to deliver about 3,400 kg (7,500 lb) of scientific investigations and supplies to the orbiting laboratory. After departure, the Kentucky Re-Entry Probe Experiment (KREPE) stowed inside Cygnus took measurements to demonstrate a thermal protection system for spacecraft and their contents during re-entry in Earth's atmosphere, which can be difficult to replicate in ground simulations. Cygnus deorbited on 15 December 2021, following a deorbit engine firing to set up a destructive re-entry in which the spacecraft, filled with waste the space station crew packed in the spacecraft, burns up in theatmosphere of Earth.[17]
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