.jpg) The SpaceX CRS-6 Dragon spacecraft as seen from theISS on 17 April 2015 | |
| Names | SpX-6 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | ISS resupply |
| Operator | SpaceX |
| COSPAR ID | 2015-021A |
| SATCATno. | 40588 |
| Mission duration | 36 days, 20 hours, 31 minutes |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Dragon 1 C108 |
| Spacecraft type | Dragon 1 |
| Manufacturer | SpaceX |
| Launch mass | 6,000 kg (13,000 lb) |
| Dimensions | Height: 8.1 m (27 ft) Diameter: 4 m (13 ft) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 14 April 2015, 20:10:41 UTC |
| Rocket | Falcon 9 v1.1 (B1015) |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral,SLC-40 |
| Contractor | SpaceX |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Recovered |
| Landing date | 21 May 2015, 16:42 UTC |
| Landing site | Pacific Ocean |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit[1] |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Inclination | 51.65° |
| Berthing atISS | |
| Berthing port | Harmonynadir |
| RMS capture | 17 April 2015, 10:55 UTC |
| Berthing date | 17 April 2015, 13:29 UTC |
| Unberthing date | 21 May 2015, 09:29 UTC |
| RMS release | 21 May 2015, 11:04 UTC |
| Time berthed | 33 days, 20 hours |
| Cargo | |
| Mass | 2,015 kg (4,442 lb)[2] |
| Pressurised | 2,015 kg (4,442 lb) |
 NASA SpX-6 mission patch | |
SpaceX CRS-6, also known asSpX-6, was aCommercial Resupply Service mission to theInternational Space Station, contracted toNASA. It was the eighth flight forSpaceX's uncrewedDragoncargo spacecraft and the sixth SpaceX operational mission contracted toNASA under aCommercial Resupply Services contract. It was docked to the International Space Station from 17 April to 21 May 2015.
In July 2014, the launch was scheduled by NASA for February 2015, with berthing to the station occurring two days later. However, as a result of delays in the launch of the previousSpaceX CRS-5 mission, SpaceX CRS-6 launched on 14 April 2015. In late March, 2015, the launch was scheduled for 13 April 2015,[3] but was later postponed to 14 April 2015 due to weather conditions.[4]
AFederal Communications Commission (FCC) application submitted for temporary communication frequency authority noted the launch planning date as no earlier than 8 April 2015. The application also confirmed communication uplinks for use with the first stage of this mission as it attempted to conduct afirst-ever propulsive landing on theAutonomous spaceport drone ship after staging.[5]
NASA has contracted for the CRS-6 mission from SpaceX and therefore determines the primary payload, date/time of launch, andorbital parameters for the Dragonspace capsule. The Dragon spacecraft was filled with 2,015 kg (4,442 lb) of supplies and payloads, including critical materials to directly support about 40 of the more than 250 science and research investigations that will occur duringExpedition 43 andExpedition 44.[2]
Among other items on board:
SpaceX has the primary control over manifesting, scheduling and loadingsecondary payloads. However, there are certain restrictions included in their contract with NASA that preclude specified hazards on the secondary payloads, and also require contract-specified probabilities of success and safety margins for any SpaceX reboosts of the secondary satellites once the Falcon 9 second stage has achieved its initiallow Earth orbit (LEO).
SpaceX CRS-6 included science payloads for studying new ways to possibly counteract the microgravity-induced cell damage seen during spaceflight, the effects of microgravity on the most common cells in bones, gather new insight that could lead to treatments for osteoporosis and muscle wasting conditions, continue studies into astronaut vision changes and test a new material that could one day be used as a synthetic muscle for robotics explorers of the future. Also making the trip was a new espresso machine for space station crews.[2]
A part of this payload includes science experiments from high schools, such as a project fromAmbassador High School inTorrance, California.[10]
Dragon returned 1,370 kg (3,020 lb) of cargo toEarth.[2]
After theseparation of the second stage, SpaceX conducted aflight test andattempted to return the nearly-emptyfirst stage of the Falcon 9 through the atmosphere and land it on a 90 m × 50 m (300 ft × 160 ft)floating platform called theautonomous spaceport drone ship. The unmanned launch vehicle technically landed on the floating platform, however it came down with too much lateral velocity, tipped over, and was destroyed.[11] Elon Musk later explained that the bipropellant valve was stuck, and therefore the control system could not react rapidly enough for a successful landing.[12]
This was SpaceX's second attempt to land the booster on a floating platform after anearlier test landing attempt in January 2015 had to be abandoned due to weather conditions. The booster was fitted with a variety of technologies to facilitate the flight test, includinggrid fins andlanding legs to facilitate the post-mission test. If successful, this would have been thefirst time in history that a launch vehicle booster was returned to avertical landing.[9][13]
On 15 April 2015, SpaceX released a video of the terminal phase of the descent, the landing, the tip over, and a smalldeflagration as the stage broke up on the deck of the ASDS.[14]
TheDragon capsule used for this mission was successfully flown a second time in December 2017 withSpaceX CRS-13. The capsule made its third and final flight as part of theSpaceX CRS-18 mission on 25 July 2019.
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This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.
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