Upcoming Cargo Missions to Resupply International Space Station

Two cargo resupply missions are scheduled to launch to the International Space Station (ISS) this week, delivering essential supplies and scientific equipment to the orbiting laboratory.

On Thursday, September 11, at 11:54 a.m. EDT, a Russian Soyuz 2.1a rocket is set to launch the Progress MS-32 spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The uncrewed cargo ship will carry approximately three tons of food, fuel, and supplies for the Expedition 73 crew aboard the ISS. Progress MS-32 is expected to dock with the station two days later, where it will remain for about six months before departing for a re-entry into Earth's atmosphere to dispose of trash loaded by the crew.

Following the Progress mission, Northrop Grumman's Cygnus XL spacecraft is scheduled for launch on Sunday, September 14, at 6:11 p.m. EDT. The Cygnus XL will lift off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This mission marks the debut of the Cygnus XL configuration, featuring an expanded pressurized cargo module capable of carrying up to 5,000 kilograms of supplies. The spacecraft is named S.S. William "Willie" C. McCool in honor of the NASA astronaut who perished in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003.

The Cygnus XL is expected to deliver over 11,000 pounds of science, research, and supplies to the ISS, including materials to produce semiconductor crystals in space and equipment to develop improvements for cryogenic fuel tanks. The spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at the ISS on Wednesday, September 17, where it will be captured by the station's robotic arm and installed on the Unity module's Earth-facing port.

These missions are part of ongoing efforts to maintain and support the ISS, ensuring the continuous presence of humans in space and the advancement of scientific research in microgravity environments.