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55-636: Orbital-D1 , also known as Orb-D1 , and Cygnus 1 , was the first flight of the Cygnus cargo spacecraft developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation . It was named after the late NASA astronaut and Orbital Sciences executive G. David Low . The flight was carried out by Orbital Sciences under contract to NASA as Cygnus' demonstration mission in the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. The mission launched on 18 September 2013 at 14:58:02 UTC . Cygnus

110-550: A further enlarged "Mission B" Cygnus will be introduced with a length of 7.89 meters (25.9 ft), a payload capacity of 5,000 kilograms (11,000 lb), an increase of 19.5%, and a pressurized cargo volume of 36 cubic metres (1,300 cu ft), an increase of 15.5%. During a typical CRS missions, Cygnus maneuvers close to the International Space Station, where the Canadarm2 robotic arm grapples

165-1009: A launch vehicle to monitor its trajectory, and if necessary initiate pyrotechnic devices to terminate the flight. LCT2 is an effort to produce a relatively low-cost transceiver to allow launch vehicles to communicate through NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) after they have gone over the horizon from the launch site. LCT2 is being pursued as part of the Space Based Range Demonstration and Certification (SBRDC) program (formerly called Space Based Telemetry and Range Safety (STARS)) in cooperation with NASA Kennedy Space Center. WFF's primary mission areas are as follows: With its sounding rocket, aircraft, and balloon flights carrying scientific payloads, its aeronautical systems testing, its range support for Space Shuttle launches, and its educational outreach activities, WFF supports all of NASA's Mission Directorates and practically all of their respective themes: In 1998,

220-459: A second competition. Orbital Sciences Corporation participated in this second round, proposing a largely "off-the-shelf" design. The spacecraft, named Cygnus, would be built around a service module based on Orbital's Star Bus , a satellite bus in use since 1997, which would be attached to a pressurized cargo module built by Thales Alenia Space , which had also built the MPLM cargo module used by

275-553: A separate facility, Wallops Station , operating directly under NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. In 1959, NASA acquired the former Naval Air Station Chincoteague , and engineering and administrative activities were moved to this location. In 1974, the Wallops Station was named Wallops Flight Center . The name was changed to Wallops Flight Facility in 1981, when it became part of Goddard Space Flight Center. In

330-532: A third ramp adjoins the Crash, Fire and Rescue building. The primary research runway has a test section with a variety of surface textures and materials for runway research projects. Weather measurements and predictions are critical to all Research Airport operations, rocket and balloon launches, and in safely conducting hazardous operations on the ground. Wallops meteorological services provide measurements of upper atmospheric and magnetic phenomena to augment and enable

385-535: A variety of antennas, receivers, and display instrumentation systems. Command uplink and optical tracking facilities are included as part of the range. The range also provides premier digital photographic and video services including operation of numerous still cameras, high speed and video systems for Range Safety support, surveillance, and post-launch analysis (e.g., failure analysis), project documentation (e.g., fabrication and test), administrative documentation, and archiving for environmental studies. In addition, WFF has

440-479: A variety of communications systems and facilities to route voice, video, and data in support of launch processing, flight, and test operations. The WFF Research Airport is located on the Main Base. There are three runways (from 4,810 feet (1,470 m) to 8,750 feet (2,670 m) long), two taxiways , three ramps, and one hazardous cargo loading area in active service. Two ramps adjoin the two active hangars, and

495-403: A water ingestion test flight. Only minor injuries to a copilot and flight engineer were reported. There were no ground injuries. The airplane was being used to test a new nose wheel tire. For the test, the airplane was passed through a "pool" or "trough" of water on the runway at different speeds. The pilot failed to obtain/maintain alignment with the water pool and lost control. The plane departed

550-457: Is capable of producing up to 4 kW of electrical power via two solar arrays. The PCM is manufactured by Thales Alenia Space in Turin , Italy. The first "Standard" PCMs had a length of 5.14 meters (16.9 ft), a payload capacity of 2,000 kilograms (4,400 lb), and a pressurized cargo volume of 18.9 cubic metres (670 cu ft). The fourth and all subsequent Cygnus spacecraft are

605-756: Is operated by the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland , and primarily serves to support science and exploration missions for NASA and other federal agencies . WFF includes an extensively instrumented range to support launches of more than a dozen types of sounding rockets ; small expendable suborbital and orbital rockets; high-altitude balloon flights carrying scientific instruments for atmospheric and astronomical research; and, using its Research Airport, flight tests of aeronautical research aircraft, including unmanned aerial vehicles . There have been over 16,000 launches from

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660-678: The G. David Low after the former NASA astronaut and Orbital employee who died of cancer on 15 March 2008. During a media briefing for the Cygnus Orb-1 mission, Orbital Sciences executive vice president Frank Culbertson stated, "We were very proud to name that [Cygnus] the G. David Low". Cygnus Orb-D1 was launched by an Antares 110 launch vehicle flying from Pad 0A at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS). The launch took place at 14:58:02   UTC on 18 September 2013, and successfully inserted

715-744: The Antares 100 series , Atlas V , Antares 200 series and Falcon 9 Block 5 . Each mission is named for a notable member of the Human spaceflight community. Wallops Flight Facility Wallops Flight Facility ( WFF ) ( IATA : WAL , ICAO : KWAL , FAA LID : WAL ) is a rocket launch site on Wallops Island on the Eastern Shore of Virginia , United States , just east of the Delmarva Peninsula and approximately 100 miles (160 km) north-northeast of Norfolk . The facility

770-614: The Canadarm2 was used to unberth the Cygnus spacecraft from the nadir port of the Harmony module at 10:04   UTC. The spacecraft was then maneuvered to a release position below the station, where it was released from the RMS at 11:31   UTC. It then performed a series of separation maneuvers away from the station. The spacecraft fired its main engine to de-orbit itself on 23 October 2013 at 17:41   UTC, with reentry and burning up in

825-603: The Canadarm2 Mobile Servicing System (MSS) as the two spacecraft sailed high above the Indian Ocean . Cygnus was berthed to the nadir port of the station's Harmony node. Cygnus Orb-D1 carried 700 kg (1,500 lb) of cargo to the ISS, including food and spare parts. After unloading, the spacecraft was loaded with 1,290 kg (2,840 lb) of cargo for disposal. On 22 October 2013,

880-833: The Falcon 9 rocket in 2024 with one more scheduled to launch in 2025, operated by CRS competitor SpaceX . In addition to Cygnus, ISS resupply missions have been flown by the Russian Progress spacecraft , the European Automated Transfer Vehicle , the Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle and the American SpaceX Dragon . Cygnus is the Greek word for swan and the name of a constellation . After

935-604: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and occasionally for foreign governments and commercial organizations. Wallops also supports development tests and exercises involving United States Navy aircraft and ship-based electronics and weapon systems in the Virginia Capes operating area, near the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay . In addition to its fixed-location instrumentation assets,

990-662: The Virginia Commercial Space Flight Authority , later joined by Maryland , built the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at Wallops on land leased from NASA. In December 2006, the facility made its first launch. The Wallops Visitor Center has a variety of hands-on exhibits and hosts weekly educational activities and programs to enable children to explore and learn about the technologies designed and used by NASA researchers and scientists. In addition, one Saturday each month, NASA invites model rocketry enthusiasts to launch their own rockets from

1045-584: The refractive index of air caused by sea breeze fronts, gust fronts, and various forms of clear air turbulence . The Wallops mobile range instrumentation includes telemetry, radar, command and power systems. These assets are used as needed to supplement instrumentation at existing ranges, or to establish a temporary range to ensure safety and collect data to support the rocket customers in a remote location where no other range instrumentation exists. This complement of transportable systems can be deployed to provide complete range capabilities at remote locations around

1100-401: The "Enhanced" variant. These have a stretched PCM with a length of 6.39 meters (21.0 ft), a payload capacity of 3,500 kilograms (7,700 lb), an increase of 32%, and a pressurized cargo volume of 27 cubic metres (950 cu ft), an increase of 19.5%. To launch the added weight, Orbital used the more powerful Castor 30XL solid-fuel rocket as a second-stage. Starting in mid-2025,

1155-566: The Arctic and Antarctic regions, South America , Africa, Europe, Australia , and at sea. Workers at Wallops include approximately 1,000 full-time NASA civil service employees and the employees of contractors, about 30 U.S. Navy personnel, and about 100 employees of NOAA. In 1945, NASA's predecessor agency, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), established a rocket launch site on Wallops Island under

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1210-520: The Cygnus into low Earth orbit . The launch marked the second flight of the Antares launch vehicle and the final flight of the interim Antares 110 configuration. Rendezvous with the ISS was originally scheduled for the fourth day of the mission. However, the rendezvous was postponed due to a computer data link problem. The exact error related to small discrepancies between the way the ISS and Cygnus each use GPS for timekeeping purposes. A further delay

1265-645: The ISS through 2016 in eight Cygnus spacecraft flights. To propel Cygnus into space, Orbital developed the Antares rocket , which also leveraged lower-cost, off-the-shelf parts and designs. Construction and design of the first stage was subcontracted to Ukrainian companies and used refurbished NK-33 engines, remnants of the Soviet N1 moon rocket. The second stage was the Castor 30 , which Orbital had previously used on another rocket project (the Minotaur-C ) and

1320-589: The Main Base, the Mainland, and the Wallops Island Launch Site. The Mainland and the Wallops Island Launch Site are about 7 miles (11 km) southeast of the Main Base. Wallops operates controlled airspace with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) qualified air traffic controllers including: Major Wallops facilities include FAA-certified runways ; an experimental UAV runway; and crash, fire, and rescue services. WFF has facilities for

1375-582: The PCM with the Return Cargo Module (RCM), which would have allowed Cygnus to return cargo to Earth. In August 2023, Northrop Grumman announced a further enlarged Mission B version of Cygnus, with a 1.5 m (4.9 ft) stretch to the payload module and payload mass increased to 5,000 kg (11,000 lb). This version is expected to enter service with the NG-23 mission in 2025 (the first to use

1430-703: The Space Shuttle, the cargo module for the European ATV spacecraft and several permanent modules on the ISS. Cygnus was awarded a COTS contract worth $ 170 million in February 2008, which was later increased to $ 288 million. On 23 December 2008, NASA awarded Orbital Sciences a $ 1.9 billion contract under the Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program. Under this contract, Orbital Sciences agreed to deliver up to 20 tons of cargo to

1485-492: The WFF range includes mobile radar , telemetry receivers, and command transmitters that can be transported by cargo planes to locations around the world, in order to establish a temporary range where no other instrumentation exists, to ensure safety, and to collect data in order to enable and support suborbital rocket launches from remote sites. The WFF mobile range assets have been used to support rocket launches from locations in

1540-717: The WFF rocket launch site. NASA personnel also participate, launching models of various rockets and explaining the spacecraft they carry in real life. The schedule for sounding rocket launches from WFF is posted on its official Web site. For many years WFF was home to the NSIP Sub-SEM and SEM projects. NSIP stands for the NASA Student Involvement Project, the Sub-SEM project was to design one of four experiments that would be inserted into an ORION-II one-stage rocket and launched above 98 percent of

1595-699: The atmosphere over the southern Pacific Ocean occurring at 18:16   UTC. Cygnus (spacecraft) Cygnus is typically launched using its parent company's Antares rocket from the Wallops Flight Facility in Virgina, however it is able to fly on other launch vehicles. After the failure of an Antares rocket destroyed Cygnus CRS Flight 3 and damaged the Wallops facility, two Cygnus missions were launched with Atlas V rockets in 2015 and 2016. Additionally, two Cygnus missions have launched on

1650-511: The atmosphere, and experience over 30 Gs of centrifugal force, while SEM was to design an experiment that would be flown on a future Space Shuttle mission. Each project gave 16 students and four teachers (four students and one teacher from each high school) the opportunity to spend an almost all-expense-paid week at WFF. Normally the students and teachers stayed in the Mariner Motel, now a Holiday Inn, conducting experiments and learning about

1705-456: The collection of scientific data by sensors aboard flight vehicles. The S-band Doppler radar system at Wallops, known as SPANDAR, is capable of automatic unambiguous tracking of targets up to 60,000 kilometers away. It can detect a single raindrop of 3 millimeters at a range of 10 kilometers and cloud water content as little as 1 gram per cubic meter. SPANDAR's sensitivity with its 60-foot (18 m) dish antenna can detect small changes in

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1760-696: The cost and responsiveness of launch and flight test activities, within the constraints of available funding and program schedules. Specifically, NASA Wallops has been leading two range technology development projects: the Autonomous Flight Safety System (AFSS) and the Low Cost TDRSS Transceiver (LCT2). AFSS is a project to develop an autonomous on-board system that could augment or replace traditional ground-commanded Range Safety flight termination systems. The AFSS would use redundant sensors and processors on board

1815-693: The direction of the Langley Research Center . This site was designated the Pilotless Aircraft Research Station and conducted high-speed aerodynamic research to supplement wind tunnel and laboratory investigations into the problems of flight. In 1958, Congress established NASA, which absorbed Langley Research Center and other NACA field centers and research facilities. At that time, the Pilotless Aircraft Research Station became

1870-625: The early years, research at Wallops concentrated on obtaining aerodynamic data at transonic and low supersonic speeds. Between 1959 and 1961, Project Mercury capsules were tested at Wallops in support of NASA's crewed space flight program - the Mercury program - before astronauts were launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Some of these tests using the Little Joe booster rocket were designed to flight-qualify components of

1925-566: The fabrication of the HALO, and for integration with the Power and Propulsion Element (PPE), being built by Maxar . The following list includes only missions that have flown and six planned missions. As of August 2024 one more mission is planned to be launched on the Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40 , and three from Wallops on an Antares 330 . Cygnus is the only cargo freighter to launch on four different launch vehicles:

1980-569: The facility. Following the presidential mandate and budget cuts the entire NSIP program, SEM and Sub-SEM included, was shut down. On April 2, 1957, a Lockheed P2V-6 Neptune exploded in midair after takeoff from what was then known as Naval Auxiliary Air Station Chincoteague . All eleven occupants of the aircraft died. On October 23, 1995, the maiden flight of a Conestoga 1620 rocket failed 46 seconds after liftoff, resulting in disintegration. EER Space Systems , Conestoga's manufacturer, concluded that low frequency noise from an unknown source upset

2035-477: The first scheduled Cygnus resupply mission arrived at the space station; the capsule carried Christmas presents and fresh fruit for the astronauts. Its arrival was delayed, first by the need to repair the station, and then by frigid weather at the launch site and solar flares that forced postponements. With the December 2015 launch of Orb CRS-4 on Atlas V, the enhanced version of Cygnus made its debut. While it

2090-474: The guidance system on the rocket causing it to order course corrections when none were needed. The rocket went off course when its first stage steering mechanism ran out of hydraulic fluid and became inoperable. After this failure, the Conestoga program was terminated, and EER abandoned the launch business. At the time of the launch, the Conestoga was the largest rocket ever launched from Wallops Island, and it

2145-512: The left side of the runway, and struck a pickup truck parked adjacent to the runway. On August 22, 2008, an ALV X-1 sounding rocket was intentionally destroyed 20 seconds into flight after veering too far off course. On October 28, 2014, a failure occurred in an Antares rocket, carrying Cygnus CRS Orb-3 , shortly after launch and destroyed both the rocket and the payload at the adjacent Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Launch Pad 0A . The NASA Wallops Flight Facility has alliances with

2200-749: The new Antares 330 launch vehicle). In August 2019, NASA decided to sole source its design for the Minimal Habitation Module (Habitation and Logistics Outpost, or HALO) of the Lunar Gateway to Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, which offered a minimalist 6.1 m (20 ft) by 3 m (9.8 ft) design based directly on the Enhanced Cygnus, as well as a larger 7 m (23 ft) by 4.4 m (14 ft) design having radial docking ports, body-mounted radiators (BMRs), batteries and communications antennas added on

2255-406: The outside. Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems opted to build the minimalist design, which offered the advantage of component compatibility and expedited testing of life support systems on existing Cygnus spacecraft. On 5 June 2020, NASA awarded Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems a $ 187 million contract to complete the preliminary design of HALO. NASA will sign a separate contract with Northrop for

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2310-524: The receipt, inspection, assembly, checkout and storage of rocket motors and other hazardous pyrotechnic devices . The Wallops Island Launch Site includes six launch pads , three blockhouses for launch control, and assembly buildings to support the preparation and launching of suborbital and orbital launch vehicles. The Wallops Research Range includes ground-based and mobile systems, and a range control center. Its radar facilities and systems are used for tracking and surveillance. Telemetry facilities include

2365-610: The retirement of the Space Shuttle was announced, NASA began to look for commercial space launch companies who could fly cargo to the ISS. In early 2006, the agency started its Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, where it would help fund the development of cargo spacecraft after a competitive process. SpaceX and Rocketplane Kistler won contracts in the COTS program, however Rocketplane Kistler failed to meet several financial milestones and on 18 October 2007, NASA announced it would terminate its contract and re-award it after

2420-509: The rocket testing range at Wallops since its founding in 1945 in the quest for information on the flight characteristics of airplanes, launch vehicles, and spacecraft, and to increase the knowledge of the Earth's upper atmosphere and the environment of outer space . The launch vehicles vary in size and power from the small Super Loki meteorological rockets to orbital-class vehicles. The Wallops Flight Facility also supports science missions for

2475-608: The shoreline with sand. A permanent ground control station for NASA's RQ-4 Global Hawk drone is at Wallops Flight Facility. The WFF Main Base is located on the Eastern Shore of Virginia on the Delmarva Peninsula about 5 miles (8.0 km) west of Chincoteague, Virginia ; about 90 miles (140 km) north of Norfolk, Virginia , and 40 miles (64 km) southeast of Salisbury, Maryland . The WFF consists of three separate parcels of land totaling 6,200 acres (25 km²):

2530-723: The spacecraft and berths it to a Common Berthing Mechanism , typically the nadir port of the Unity module . Cygnus does not provide cargo return capability. However, it can be loaded with obsolete equipment and trash which will burn up as the Cygnus makes a destructive reentry . An earlier proposed version of Cygnus would have replaced the PCM with the Unpressurized Cargo Module (UCM), based on NASA's ExPRESS Logistics Carrier , and would have been used to transport unpressurized cargo, such as ISS Orbital Replacement Units . Another proposed variant would have replaced

2585-484: The spacecraft, including the escape and recovery systems and some of the life support systems. Two rhesus monkeys, Sam and Miss Sam, were sent aloft as pioneers for astronauts; both were recovered safely. The first payload launched into orbit from Wallops Island was Explorer IX , atop a Scout rocket , on February 15, 1961. On September 6, 2013, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer ( LADEE )

2640-579: The world. While Wallops Island is the prime location for range services, major sounding rocket campaigns have been supported at Poker Flat , Alaska ; Andoya , Norway ; and Kwajalein Island, Marshall Islands . The Wallops Mobile Instrumentation is integrated with NASA and Department of Defense networks and can be used to supplement established ranges in support of rocket launches. Since 2001, engineers at NASA Wallops Flight Facility have been developing new range technologies, systems and approaches to improve

2695-421: Was based on a Peacekeeper ICBM first stage. The first Cygnus flight was originally planned to occur in December 2010, but was repeatedly delayed. The Antares made its maiden flight lifting a payload mass simulator to low Earth orbit on April 21, 2013. On September 18, 2013, Antares successfully launched a Cygnus spacecraft on a flight test to rendezvous with the International Space Station. On 12 January 2014,

2750-503: Was based on prior products developed by Orbital including the GEOStar and LEOStar (collectively known as Star Bus ) satellite buses and the Dawn spacecraft . It has a gross mass of 1,800 kg (4,000 lb), 32 thrusters for attitude control and one BT-4 main engine fuelled with 800 kg (1,800 lb) of hypergolic propellants, hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide . The SM

2805-445: Was launched from Wallops, atop a Minotaur V rocket. This was the first time that an American lunar mission had been launched from anywhere but Florida . Wallops Island is currently experiencing beach erosion of 10 to 22 feet (3 to 7 meters) a year, due in part to the current sea level rise ; some access roads and parking lots have had to be rebuilt several times over the past five years. NASA has responded by continually fortifying

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2860-472: Was necessary to allow for the arrival of Soyuz TMA-10M with three new ISS crew members. A week late, the spacecraft conducted a series of navigation, control and safety tests as it approached the station. Following the successful completion of ten test objectives, the spacecraft was cleared to make its final approach, holding 12 m (39 ft) below the ISS. Then, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano grappled it at 11:00   UTC, on 29 September 2013, using

2915-652: Was planned from the beginning to fly on the fifth mission, the Orb CRS-3 failure and subsequent move to Atlas V meant a delay. However, lessons learned on packing and the extra capabilities of the Atlas allowed payload to be increased to 3,500 kg (7,700 lb). The Cygnus spacecraft consists of two basic components: the Service Module (SM) and the Pressurized Cargo Module (PCM). The SM

2970-535: Was the first orbital mission attempted from the facility since 1985. The company's launch pad at Wallops Island were the first commercially built facilities in the US. 14 scientific experiments, some of which were planned to return from orbit, were destroyed. All debris landed in the Atlantic Ocean. There were no injuries. On October 27, 1998, a Learjet 45 was destroyed at Wallops after a loss of control during

3025-557: Was the seventh type of spacecraft to visit the International Space Station (ISS), after the crewed Soyuz and Space Shuttle , and uncrewed Progress , ATV , HTV and Dragon 1 . The Cygnus Orb-D1 mission was the first flight of the Cygnus spacecraft and used the standard configuration with a Pressurized Cargo Module (PCM), built by Thales Alenia Space , in Italy . Orbital named this mission's Cygnus spacecraft

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