SpaceX Dragon Arrives at ISS - Docked

SpaceX Dragon spacecraft arrives at ISS to unload cargo and refresh astronauts' supplies. 

Credit: NASA

SpaceX's Dragon capsule is set to arrive at the International Space Station this morning.

The cargo craft, launched early Saturday from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is carrying more than 5,000 pounds of supplies and payloads, including the Cloud–Aerosol Transport System (CATS), which will monitor cloud and aerosol coverage that directly impacts the global climate.

ESA Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti tweeted; 'Dragon is berthed! Did leak check & equalized pressure, now our hatch is open. On Dragon hatch "smell of space".' 

Cloud–Aerosol Transport System (CATS) 

Credit: NASA

ISS Re-supply Missions: Five spaceships parked at the Space Station

Five spacecraft are parked at the International Space Station including the Soyuz TMA-14M and Dragon which docked this week. 

Credit: NASA

Mars isn't the only place in the Solar System that was busy this week with arriving spacecraft.

This week the International Space Station welcomed two arriving spacecraft, bringing the total of docked ships at the ISS to five.

Last night, the Expedition 41/42 crew arrived—peeling in on one solar panel on their Soyuz TMA-14M, with the first female cosmonaut to be part of an ISS crew,

Elena Serova along with her crewmates cosmonaut Alexander Samokutyaev, and NASA astronaut Barry Wilmore.

They took the Soyuz "fast track," arriving at the station in just under six hours after launch.

One of the craft's solar panels jammed and couldn't deploy, but the crew docked to Poisk docking compartment without indecent.

The arrival of Wilmore, Samokutyaev and Serova returns the station's crew complement to six.

Already on board are Commander Max Suraev of Roscosmos, Reid Wiseman of NASA and Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency. They have been aboard the complex since May.

Earlier this week, on September 23, the SpaceX Dragon capsule arrived with over 2.5 tons of science experiments and supplies for the crew.

Also docked to the space station is the Soyuz ship that will take Suraev, Wiseman and Gerst home, a Progress resupply ship and the European ATV-5 supply ship.

There are two more cargo missions targeted to launch to the space station before the end of the year.

Orbital Sciences just announced October 20 as the next launch date for their Cygnus commercial space freighter.

It will occupy the same Harmony node port as Dragon when it leaves in a few weeks. When Cygnus vacates the Harmony node port, SpaceX CRS-5 will replace it in December.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Raising Money At A Valuation Approaching $10B

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX), the commercial space transportation startup founded by Elon Musk with ambitions to land people on Mars, is said to be raising investment that values the company somewhere south of $10 billion.

SpaceX has responded sayng: “SpaceX is not currently raising any funding nor has any external valuation of the magnitude you reported been done.”

SpaceX continues to make advances with its own spacecraft and rack up more agreements for future commercial and government launches.

The company also faces stiffer competition from other commercial firms that are looking to compete more aggressively in the new space race.

The latest capital infusion includes a large secondary investment, which appears to be somewhere in the region of $200 million.

This confirms some of the details published in April this year by Quartz, which cited a source reporting that the company might be raising between $50 million and $200 million.

According to CrunchBase, SpaceX has raised $245.5 million in private backing, with the last round disclosed in December 2012.

In its first 10 years of operation, SpaceX generated $4 billion in contracts (that includes funding from NASA between $400 million and $500 million).

The manifest for upcoming launches lists just under 40 missions planned between now and 2018.

For satellite operators looking for launch vessels, part of the attraction of SpaceX has to do with price.

Launches currently cost under $60 million for a low-Earth orbit launch on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 craft.

But it is working on more efficient technology for the rockets, including reusability, with some success already with return landings.

If successful, the projection is that a launch could cost as little as between $5 million and $7 million.

In tandem, SpaceX is also pursuing its Mars ambitions. One big step on that trajectory is the development of spacecraft capable of carrying humans and cargo.

Manned test missions involving the Falcon Heavy and the Dragon are planned in the next two to three years.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to Unveil Manned Dragon ‘Space Taxi’ on May 29

SpaceX Dragon cargo freighter berthed to the International Space Station during recently concluded SpaceX-3 mission in May 2014. 

An upgraded, manrated version will carry US astronauts to space in the next two to three years. 

Credit: NASA

SpaceX CEO, founder and chief designer Elon Musk is set to unveil the manned version of his firms commercial Dragon spaceship later this week, setting in motion an effort that he hopes will soon restore America's capability to launch US astronauts to low Earth orbit and the International Space Station (ISS) by 2017.

Musk will personally introduce SpaceX's 'Space Taxi' dubbed 'Dragon V2' at what amounts to sort of a world premiere event on May 29 at the company's headquarters in Hawthorne, CA, according to an official announcement this evening (May 27) from SpaceX.

"SpaceX's new Dragon V2 spacecraft is a next generation spacecraft designed to carry astronauts into space," according to the SpaceX statement.

The manned Dragon will launch atop the powerful SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket from a SpaceX pad on the Florida Space Coast.

Dragon was initially developed as a commercial unmanned resupply freighter to deliver 20,000 kg (44,000 pounds) of supplies and science experiments to the ISS under a $1.6 Billion Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA during a dozen Dragon cargo spacecraft flights through 2016.

Musk is making good on a recent comment he posted to twitter on April 29, with respect to the continuing fallout from the deadly crisis in Ukraine which has resulted in some US economic sanctions imposed against Russia, that now potentially threaten US access to the ISS in a boomerang action from the Russian government:

"Sounds like this might be a good time to unveil the new Dragon Mk 2 spaceship that @SpaceX has been working on with @NASA."

"No trampoline needed," Musk tweeted. The 'Dragon V2' is an upgraded, man rated version of the unmanned spaceship that can carry a mix of cargo and up to a seven crewmembers to the ISS.

Dragon is among a trio of US private sector manned spaceships being developed with seed money from NASA's Commercial Crew Program in a public/private partnership to develop a next-generation crew transportation vehicle to ferry astronauts to and from the ISS by 2017, a capability totally lost following the space shuttle's forced retirement in 2011.

NASA astronauts and industry experts check out the crew accommodations in the Dragon spacecraft under development by SpaceX. 

The evaluation in Hawthorne, Calif., on Jan. 30, 2012, was part of SpaceX’s Commercial Crew Development Round 2 agreement with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. 

Credit: NASA

Since that day, US astronauts have been totally dependent on the Russian Soyuz capsules for ferry rides to orbit and back.

The Boeing CST-100 and Sierra Nevada Dream Chaser 'space taxis' are also vying for funding in the next round of contracts to be awarded by NASA around late summer 2014.

All three company's have been making excellent progress in meeting their NASA mandated milestones in the current contract period known as Commercial Crew Integrated Capability initiative (CCiCAP) under the auspices of NASA's Commercial Crew Program.

SpaceX's Dragon: Robotic Capsule Undocks from Canadarm on Space Station

SpaceX's Dragon capsule was released from the International Space Station's robotic arm at 9:26 a.m. EDT (1326 GMT) on May 18, 2014.
Credit: NASA TV

SpaceX's Dragon robotic, unmanned, capsule departed the International Space Station today, putting it on a path back to Earth after about one month attached to the orbiting outpost.

The robotic spacecraft is loaded down with more than 3,500 lbs. (1,587 kg) worth of science samples and supplies which should be safely delivered to Earth once the SpaceX capsule splashes down in the Pacific Ocean later today (May 18).

Splashdown is expected to occur at about 3:02 p.m. EDT (1902 GMT) off the coast of Baja California where officials can recover the supply craft.

The SpaceX Dragon capsule orbits with the International Space Station before its release on May 18, 2014.

Credit: NASA TV

Ground controllers maneuvered the space station's robotic arm to pluck Dragon from the Harmony module and move it into position for release.

The spacecraft was let go from the station at 9:26 a.m. EDT (1326 GMT) as both flew 266 miles (428 kilometers) above the ocean south of Australia, according to NASA.

SpaceX's Dragon also performed a series of thruster burns to move a safe distance from the station before it is expected to execute its deorbit burn at about 2:12 p.m. EDT (1812 GMT).

Dragon has been attached to the space station since April 20, after its launch atop the private spaceflight company's Falcon 9 rocket on April 18 from Florida.

SpaceX successfully performed a daring reusable rocket test during the April 18 launch.

The spaceflight company brought the boost stage of the Falcon 9 rocket back to Earth, landing it upright in the ocean, after delivering Dragon to the proper orbit.

SpaceX's Dragon capsule flies above Angola while attached to the International Space Station just before its release on May 18, 2014. 

Credit: NASA TV

SpaceX-3 Mission To Return Dragon’s Share of Space Station Science

While the splashdown of SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft on May 18 will conclude the company’s third contracted resupply mission to the International Space Station, it also serves as a high point for the scientists who have investigations returning to Earth who are eager to complete their analyses.

When the Dragon spacecraft splashes down in the Pacific Ocean, it will carry with it more than 1,600 pounds of scientific supplies. These supplies include samples from biology, biotechnology and physical science investigations, as well as human research.

"While some of this data can be obtained by on orbit analysis, many analysis techniques have not been miniaturized or modified to allow them to be performed on orbit, which means sample return is the only way to obtain this data," said Marybeth Edeen, space station research integration office deputy manager at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

SpaceX Dragon's third operational mission will end May 18 after a month-long stay at the International Space Station. 

The unmanned spacecraft will return more than 1,600 pounds of science materials from the orbital outpost.

Image Credit: NASA

One of many studies returning examines drug-resistant bacteria to determine gene expression patterns and changes in microgravity.

The Antibiotic Effectiveness in Space (AES-1) investigation uses E. coli to better understand the decreased effectiveness of antibiotics during spaceflight.

The study is set on the premise derived from previous investigations that suggest bacteria are able to grow in space even in an antibiotic concentration that would normally deter growth.

“We intend to further corroborate these early findings and conduct more in depth genetic assays of the returned samples to get a better understanding of what might be responsible for this outcome,” said AES-1 principal investigator David Klaus, Ph.D., of BioServe Space Technologies at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

As bacteria grow more resistant to antibiotics, there are less effective pharmaceutical treatment options for people with bacterial infections.

The findings from AES-1 may help improve antibiotic development on Earth.

Advancing the efficacy of antibiotics and reducing their resistance to bacteria is a priority for health care professionals.

SpaceX Falcon9 and Dragon Cargo Craft Launch Scrubbed

Monday's launch attempt of the SpaceX Dragon cargo craft, loaded with nearly 5,000 pounds of supplies for the International Space Station's Expedition 39 crew, was scrubbed due to a helium leak on the Falcon 9 first stage. 

The next launch opportunity would be Friday, April 18 at 3:25 p.m. EDT if the issue can be resolved.

The launch of the third SpaceX Dragon commercial resupply services mission from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida will send the vehicle on course to rendezvous with the station several days later.

Commander Koichi Wakata and Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio will capture the space freighter using the Canadarm2 robotic arm to set it up for its berthing to the Earth-facing port of the Harmony module.

Mission managers and SpaceX had agreed Sunday to proceed with Monday's launch attempt despite the loss Friday of a multiplexer demultiplexer (MDM) backup computer relay system in the S0 truss that assists in providing insight into truss systems, the operation of the external cooling loops, the operations of the Solar Alpha Rotary joints and the Mobile Transporter rail car.

SpaceX Falcon 9 Launch: Dragon Preparations Continue

International Space Station Program officials and representatives of SpaceX decided Saturday to continue preparations for the launch of the Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon cargo craft to the space station.

The launch is slated for Monday 14th April from Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.

The launch will go ahead despite the failure Friday of a backup MDM computer communications component that provides redundancy for commanding the Mobile Transporter rail car on the truss of the station. 

A final decision on whether to launch Dragon Monday will not be made until another status meeting is conducted Sunday morning.

NASA has rescheduled its SpaceX prelaunch briefing allow for operational reviews in the morning.

It now will be held at 1 p.m. EDT at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. For updates on the schedule of events for Sunday, call the Kennedy News Center recording at 321-867-2525.

The component, called a multiplexer demultiplexer (MDM) is one of more than a dozen housed on the truss of the station that routes computer commands to various systems on the outpost.

The failure Friday to a box called EXT-2, a backup box to a prime component in the S0 truss that measures 10.5 x 14.9 x 16.4 inches and weighs 50.8 pounds, occurred during a routine health check of the device.

The prime multiplexer continues to operate flawlessly, and there has been no impact to station operations.

The crew was informed of the problem and is in no danger, continuing its normal complement of research work and routine maintenance.

A reboost of the station using the ISS Progress 53 thrusters was conducted Saturday as planned and placed the laboratory at the correct altitude for Soyuz crew landing and launch operations in May.

SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket Launch delayed: Robonaut-2B waits for its new legs on Space Station

Robonaut R2A waving goodbye as Robonaut R2B launches into space aboard STS-133 from the Kennedy Space Center. 

R2 is the first humanoid robot in space. 

Credit: Joe Bibby

Unfortunately, R2 was designed without legs, as a desktop robotic unit but a set of new legs were designed, developed and built to complete R2.

R2 was meant to receive these new legs this weekend but the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon, it's cargo craft payload, has been postponed until 30th March 2014.

So, R2 is going to have to wait until then for his new legs.

Orbital Science Cygnus: Supply ship departs space station after five weeks

Orbital Science's Cygnus Supply ship ended its five-week visit Tuesday morning. 

NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins used Canadarm, the space station's robot arm, to release the capsule, as the orbiting lab sailed 260 miles (418 kilometers) above the South Atlantic.

Cygnus is filled with garbage and will burn up Wednesday when it plunges through the atmosphere, over the Pacific.

After a number of delays, Orbital Sciences Corp. launched the capsule last month from Virginia under a $1.9 billion contract with NASA.

The Cygnus successfully delivered 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) of goods, including belated Christmas gifts for the six-man crew and hundreds of ants for a student experiment.

The ants are still aboard the space station. They'll return to Earth aboard another company's cargo ship, the SpaceX Dragon.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp., (SpaceX) based in Southern California—will launch its next Dragon from Cape Canaveral on March 16 with a fresh load of supplies.



NASA is paying Orbital Sciences and SpaceX to keep the space station stocked. Russia, Japan and Europe also take turns making deliveries.

The SpaceX Dragon is the only craft capable of safely returning a pile of items, now that NASA's space shuttles are retired.

The resolute Russian Soyuz crew capsule is not built for staorage. It has just enough room for three astronauts and a few odds and ends.

A handful of American companies, including SpaceX, are working to develop craft to carry space station crews. Until that happens, NASA must continue to buy seats for its astronauts on the elderly but reliable, Soyuz Progress.

Americans have not launched from U.S. soil since the last shuttle flight in 2011. NASA expects it will be 2017 before U.S. astronauts rocket into orbit from their homeland.

SpaceX Dragon capsule returns from International Space Station

The SpaceX Dragon capsule is captured by the crew of the International Space Station using its robotic arm in this screen capture from NASA handout video released March 3, 2013. 

Credit REUTERS/NASA/Handout

A Space Exploration Technologies' Dragon cargo capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on Tuesday, bringing back science experiments and gear from the International Space Station (ISS).

The spacecraft left the orbital outpost at 6:56 a.m. ET, and parachuted into the ocean about 225 miles west of Mexico's Baja California at 12:34 p.m. ET.

"Recovery ship just heard the sonic booms from Dragon re-entry and has data transmission lock," Elon Musk, founder and chief executive of the privately held company known as SpaceX, wrote on Twitter just before splashdown.

A minute later, recovery ship personnel reported seeing Dragon's parachutes, Musk said.

"Recovery ship has secured Dragon," Musk wrote. "Cargo looks A-OK."

The ship will take the capsule to the Port of Los Angeles, near the company's Hawthorne, California, headquarters, a journey expected to take about 30 hours.

Dragon's return began 252 miles above Earth when astronauts aboard the station used a robotic crane to pluck the capsule from its berthing port and set it into orbit.

SpaceX flight controllers then stepped in and remotely commanded Dragon to fire its steering thrusters and begin the 5.5-hour journey home.

Thomas Marshburn

"It looks beautiful from here," station flight engineer Thomas Marshburn radioed to Mission Control in Houston as the capsule flew away.

"Sad to see the Dragon go. Performed her job beautifully, heading back to her lair. Wish her all the best for the splashdown today," Marshburn said.

The Dragon cargo ship reached the station on March 3 with more than 2,300 pounds (1,043 kg) of science equipment, spare parts, food and supplies. It was the second of 12 planned cargo runs for NASA under a $1.6 billion contract.

A second freighter, built and operated by Orbital Sciences Corp, is expected to debut this year.

The U.S. space agency hired both firms to fill the gap left by the retirement of its space shuttle fleet in 2011.

Dragon's arrival was delayed a day while SpaceX engineers grappled with a thruster pod problem that had threatened to derail the mission.

"I don't want to go through that again. That was hard-core," Musk said during a keynote speech at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, earlier this month.

PRECISION RENDEZVOUS
Engineers believe the glitch was caused by a blockage in a pressurisation line or a stuck valve. It was cleared and the capsule made a precision rendezvous with the station with no problems.

Dragon returned to Earth with 2,668 (1,210 kg) of cargo, including a freezer filled with biological samples from the crew for medical research.

While Russian (Progress), European (ATV) and Japanese (HTV) freighters also service the station, only the SpaceX vessel is designed to return cargo to Earth, a critical transportation link that had been lost with the retirement of the shuttles.

SpaceX is working to upgrade the Dragon capsule to fly people as well. A test flight with company astronauts is targeted for 2016.

SpaceX's New Merlin 1D Rocket Engine Cleared for Private Launches

Two of SpaceX's Merlin 1D engines sit on a test stand at the company's rocket-development facility in McGregor, Texas.

Credit: SpaceX

SpaceX's next-generation rocket engine is ready to fly and will likely power a commercial space launch for the first time this summer, company officials announced Wednesday (March 20).

The Merlin 1D engine was judged flight-ready after firing for a total of nearly 33 minutes over the course of 28 different tests at SpaceX's rocket-development facility in McGregor, Texas. The new engine will soon be incorporated into the company's Falcon 9 rocket, officials said.

"The Merlin 1D successfully performed every test throughout this extremely rigorous qualification program," SpaceX CEO and chief designer Elon Musk said in a statement. "With flight qualification now complete, we look forward to flying the first Merlin 1D engines on Falcon 9’s Flight 6 this year."

The Falcon 9 has flown five times to date, most recently on March 1, when it blasted the robotic Dragon capsule toward the International Space Station on California-based SpaceX's second contracted supply run for NASA. According to the company's launch manifest, flight number six will launch a Canadian communications satellite, likely in mid-June.

Company officials say the Merlin 1D will provide a big boost for the Falcon 9, which until now has been powered by Merlin 1C engines in its first stage (nine of them, hence the name).

"The Merlin 1D has a vacuum thrust-to-weight ratio exceeding 150, the best of any liquid rocket engine in history," SpaceX officials wrote in a press release Wednesday.

"This enhanced design makes the Merlin 1D the most efficient booster engine ever built, while still maintaining the structural and thermal safety margins needed to carry astronauts."

SpaceX indeed plans to launch astronauts using the Merlin 1D. The company is working on a manned version of its Falcon 9/Dragon transportation system, in the hopes of scoring a NASA contract to ferry astronauts to and from the space station.

Hadfield and the Dragon - Image

Credit: Chris Hadfield / Canadian Space Agency

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield poses with SpaceX's Dragon capsule after it docked successfully with the International space station.

The SpaceX-2 mission Launch

Space Exploration Technologies' Falcon 9 rocket lifts off Space Launch Complex 40 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 10:10 a.m. EST on Friday, March 1, 2013, carrying a Dragon capsule filled with cargo.

 The SpaceX Dragon capsule is making its third trip to the International Space Station, following a demonstration flight in May 2012 and the first resupply mission in October 2012.

The SpaceX-2 mission is the second of 12 SpaceX flights contracted by NASA to resupply the orbiting laboratory.

Image Credit: NASA

SpaceX Dragon Arrives at ISS: CanadArm2 grapple

SpaceX Dragon grappled by Canadarm2. 

Credit: NASA

SpaceX's unmanned cargo freighter Dragon arrived at the International Space Station this morning carrying supplies for the orbiting outpost.

The arrival had been delayed from yesterday after a temporary glitch with the vehicle's thrusters.

Dragon was captured by the station's robotic arm, Canadarm2 at 9.31 GMT. The robotic arm was operated by Expedition 34 Commander Kevin Ford with assistance from flight engineers Tom Marshburn and Chris Hadfield.

Commander Ford said: "As they say, it’s not where you start, but where you finish that counts, and you guys really finished this one on the mark. You’re aboard, and we’ve got lots of science on there to bring aboard to get done."

The final phase of the vehicle's arrival is for Mission Control to remotely operate the station's robotic arm to guide the capsule to its port on the Earth-facing side of the Harmony module.

The berthing mechanism will ensure the craft is properly attached and sealed to its port.

SpaceX Dragon Launch - Video

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon spacecraft lifted off at 10:10 a.m. EST from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, beginning its mission to resupply the International Space Station.

Credit: NASA

SpaceX Optimistic about Launch Despite Thruster Outage

SpaceX said it was "optimistic" Friday after a thruster outage delayed the latest resupply mission of its unmanned Dragon capsule en route to the International Space Station.

SpaceX and NASA officials said the cargo resupply mission was still on track, but the technical mishap could fuel concerns about the US agency's ambitious plans to cut costs by privatizing elements of the space program.

SpaceX's billionaire founder Elon Musk said the failure of three out of four thruster pods to fire up was a "little frightening" but that two pods were back online within a few hours and the others should be working again shortly.

"I'm optimistic that we will be able to turn all four thruster pods on and restore full control," he told reporters.
Musk later tweeted: "Thruster pods one through four are now operating nominally. Preparing to raise orbit. All systems green."

SpaceX and NASA officials said once the pods are back online, they would carry out a number of checks before clearing the vessel to dock at the space station in the coming days, perhaps as early as Sunday.

The original rendezvous had been planned for 1130 GMT Saturday, but Mike Suffredini, NASA program manager for the International Space Station, said there was "quite a bit of flexibility" in the berthing date.

SpaceX Dragon: NASA AMES Space Station Experiments Payload

Two bioscience payloads are scheduled to be launched to the International Space Station Friday, March 1, on the second Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) cargo resupply mission contracted by NASA. 

The experiments, Seedling Growth-1 and the Cell Bio Tech Demo, aim to expand knowledge of how living things respond to the harsh environment of space.

Seedling Growth-1 is the first in a series of joint NASA-European Space Agency (ESA) experiments designed to improve understanding of plant growth in space. The experiment will study how plants adapt to micro- and low-gravity environments.

Researchers hope to determine the ability of vegetation to provide a complete, sustainable, dependable and economical means for human life support in space.

Understanding plant growth also helps on Earth, supporting the development of strategies to optimize light sensing in plants, and modifying plant species to potentially improve crop production, lessen environmental impact and support greater sustainability of agricultural production to benefit human agriculture.

Designed and built at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., the unique hardware is mounted to ESA-built experiment containers and is completely self-contained, providing air circulation, water and light for the seeds.

Once on the space station, the experiment containers will be mounted in a centrifuge in ESA's European Modular Cultivation System (EMCS) to test the effects of micro- and low-gravity environments on the growth of the seeds.

"The Seedling Growth experiments are an exciting opportunity for international collaboration between NASA and ESA to support critical space flight plant experiments to benefit Earth and Space Life Sciences," said Marianne Steele, project manager for Seedling Growth.

"The data from the experiments will be shared between both NASA and ESA researchers and our team here at Ames is thrilled to be part of this fantastic adventure."

Plant biology experiments on the space station using the EMCS allow scientists to investigate plant growth and the processes within their cells to understand how plant life responds to conditions in space.

The EMCS is a facility in which small organisms can grow in variable gravity conditions using a centrifuge.

Other conditions, such as temperature, atmosphere composition, water supply, illumination and imaging, also are controlled in the facility.

SpaceX Dragon to Launch on Friday

The weather forecast is 90 percent favorable for the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft at 10:10 a.m. EST Friday from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

The mission -- carrying more than 1,200 pounds of scientific experiments and cargo -- is the second of 12 SpaceX flights contracted by NASA to resupply the International Space Station.

SpaceX managers held a Launch Readiness Review Wednesday afternoon and gave a “go” to proceed toward launch of the second SpaceX Commercial Resupply Services mission.

Liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft is scheduled for 10:10 a.m. EST on Friday. Launch coverage will begin at 8:30 a.m. on NASA Television and www.nasa.gov/ntv and the NASA launch blog at www.nasa.gov/spacex.

On Thursday, NASA TV will air an International Space Station Mission Science Briefing at 1 p.m. and a Mission Prelaunch News Conference at 3 p.m.

Image above: The Dragon spacecraft stands inside a processing hangar at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station where teams had just installed the spacecraft's solar array fairings on Jan. 12, 2013. Image credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

SpaceX to Launch Dragon Capsules carrying Human Cargo - Astronauts

The SpaceX Dragon commercial cargo craft is grappled by the International Space Station's Canadarm2 robotic arm.

This manouvre was carried out on Oct. 10, 2012 during the spacecraft's first cargo delivery mission for NASA, under a $1.6 billion deal for commercial cargo delivery.

CREDIT: NASA

Representatives from the three different companies chosen by NASA to develop private space taxis to carry astronauts to orbit say their vehicles are making substantial progress toward launching people into orbit within the next few years.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX), The Boeing Company, and Sierra Nevada Corp., are competing to fill the gap left by NASA's retired space shuttles for the launching of cargo and crews to the International Space Station.

Each private space taxi firm has received funding from NASA under the Commercial Crew integrated Capability program (CCiCap) to complete a series of development milestones with the goal of taking over transportation to low-Earth orbit from the Russians.

"We're going great guns, we're working very hard, and we hope to have people flying very soon inside the Dragon," SpaceX's commercial crew project manager Garrett Reisman said at the International Symposium for Personal and Commercial Spaceflight.