![The Antares rocket with the NG-19 Cygnus spacecraft stands at Pad 0A awaiting launch. Credit: NASA](https://www.spaceflightinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/53079717520_5080f88a2d_k.jpg)
The Antares rocket with the NG-19 Cygnus spacecraft stands at Pad 0A awaiting launch. Credit: NASA
WALLOPS ISLAND, Virginia — Northrop Grumman is about to launch a Cygnus cargo spacecraft atop what will likely be the ultimate flight of the Antares 230+ rocket.
The NG-19 mission to the International Space Station will begin with a liftoff schedule for 8:31 p.m. EDT (00:31 UTC) Aug. 1, 2023, from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island in Virginia. Aboard will likely be hundreds of kilos of cargo, equipment and science experiments certain for the outpost’s seven-person Expedition 69 crew.
Due to Russia’s war in Ukraine, this will likely be the ultimate launch of the rocket on this configuration.
The primary stage core structures and propellant systems of Antares 230+ were manufactured by Yuzhmash State Enterprise under the design authority of Yuzhnoye SDO in Dnipro, Ukraine, and the primary stage’s RD-181 engines made by Russian manufacturer Energomash are not any longer being delivered attributable to Russian sanctions on the U.S. and vise versa.
![The Antares 230+ first stage in the horizontal integration hangar in preparation for launch. Steve Hammer / Spaceflight Insider](https://www.spaceflightinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/DSC_3884.jpg)
The Antares 230+ first stage within the horizontal integration hangar in preparation for launch. Steve Hammer / Spaceflight Insider
Given this dependency on overseas suppliers, Northrop Grumman had been looking for an area partner. In August 2022, the corporate announced a partnership with Firefly Aerospace to develop a domestic version of the rocket. This move not only reduces vulnerability attributable to international political developments but in addition positions the corporate to compete for contracts from the Department of Defense.
The brand new rocket will likely be called the Antares 330. Since the propulsion technology of Firefly employs the identical propellants as the present Antares rocket, it diminishes the requirement for substantial alterations on the fuel farm on the Wallops launch site.
Seven of Firefly’s Miranda engines will power the Antares 330, and it would also harness Firefly’s composite technology for constructing the primary stage structures and tanks.
Concurrently, Northrop Grumman will contribute its tried-and-tested avionics and software, upper-stage structures, and the Castor 30XL motor, coupled with its proficiency in vehicle assembly and launch pad procedures. This latest stage is about to significantly boost the orbit-bound payload capability of the Antares rocket.
The upgraded Antares 330 rocket may make its first appearance as soon as the top of 2024.
![An illustration of the upgraded Antares 330 rocket. Credit: Northrop Grumman](https://www.spaceflightinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/FZp4Rl9X0AAKJqH.jpg)
An illustration of the upgraded Antares 330 rocket. Credit: Northrop Grumman
As a way to cover the transitional service gap of Antares, Northrop Grumman has acquired three SpaceX Falcon 9 launches, ensuring the continuity of Cygnus space station cargo deliveries with minimal disruption.
With the NG-19 mission, Northrop Grumman is marking 10 years of providing business resupply services missions. To this point, Cygnus has transported roughly 130,000 kilos (59,000 kilograms) of crucial cargo, supplies, equipment and scientific experiments to the crews of the International Space Station.
The launch of the NG-19 spacecraft, dubbed S.S. Laurel Clark, will happen from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Pad 0A, situated on Wallops Island, Virginia. The spacecraft is about to move some 8,200 kilos (3,700 kilograms) of scientific research, supplies for the crew and equipment to the space station so as to assist the Expedition 69 crew.
Considered one of the experiments aboard is known as Neuronix, a project supported by the ISS National Lab, which is able to explore the creation of three-dimensional neuron cell cultures in a microgravity environment and experiments with a gene therapy specifically designed for neurons.
One other is Saffire VI, which is able to deliver an important standard for verifying models of how fire affects the livability of a spacecraft.
Moreover, there’s the Multi Needle Langmuir Probe, which is able to track the densities of plasma within the ionosphere and the Exploration PWD, which is able to employ cutting-edge methods for water sanitization and reducing microbial growth, and it also provides hot water.
The Cygnus system is built upon a proven and effective design, incorporating components from each Northrop Grumman and its partner corporations. It consists of a service module, developed by Northrop Grumman, and a pressurized cargo module, which is built by Thales Alenia Space. Together, these modules work in tandem to make sure the successful functioning of the Cygnus system, supporting its mission to deliver essential supplies and equipment to the ISS.
During its cargo resupply missions to the ISS, the Cygnus vehicle has showcased a spread of sophisticated abilities. These include autonomous navigation, deploying cube satellites from external deployers, transporting live rodents to the station, serving as a functional laboratory while docked to the station, elevating the station’s orbit and autonomously operating in orbit for prolonged periods, surpassing one 12 months.
Once in space, the NG-19 Cygnus spacecraft is anticipated to take about two days to succeed in the ISS where it would spend several months attached to the Earth-facing port of the Unity module.