Watch the Launch

Cygnus CRS-2 NG-16 (S.S. Ellison Onizuka)

Circle Image

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Resupply

Low Earth Orbit Launch Area 0 A Wallops Island, Virginia, USA Probability: 80%

This is the 16th planned flight of the Orbital ATK's uncrewed resupply spacecraft Cygnus and its 15th flight to the International Space Station under the Commercial Resupply Services contract with NASA. This Cygnus spacecraft is named after American astronaut Ellison Onizuka who died in the destruction of the Space Shuttle Challenger.

Infographic

Geoff Barrett is an independent graphic artist that creates launch infographics for space flight events.

Updates

SwGustav • Aug. 10, 2021, 8:28 p.m.

Adjusting T-0


Nosu • Aug. 9, 2021, 11:37 a.m.

Weather 80%


Cosmic_Penguin • July 8, 2021, 4:49 a.m.

New launch time.


Antares 230+

Family: Antares
Configuration: 230+

Antares known during early development as Taurus II, is an expendable launch system developed by Orbital Sciences Corporation (now part of Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems after Northrop Grumman acquired Orbital ATK) and the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau to launch the Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station as part of NASA's COTS and CRS programs. Able to launch payloads heavier than 5,000 kg (11,000 lb) into low-Earth orbit, Antares is the largest rocket operated by Orbital ATK. Antares launches from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport and made its inaugural flight on April 21, 2013.

See Antares Details
Specifications
  • Minimum Stage
    2
  • Max Stage
    3
  • Length
    42.5 m
  • Diameter
    3.9 m
  • Fairing Diameter
  • Launch Mass
    286 T
  • Thrust
    3844 kN
Family
  • Name
    Antares 230+
  • Family
    Antares
  • Variant
    230+
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Antares 230+
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
  • Low Earth Orbit
    8200 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

Cygnus CRS NG-16 (S.S. Ellison Onizuka)


Active Cargo Unmanned Payload Capacity: 3750 kg
Destination: International Space Station
Serial Number: None

This is the sixteenth flight to the ISS by the Cygnus spacecraft under the CRS program and their fifth under the CRS-2 program. This is also the 12th use of the enhanced size Cygnus.

Cygnus Enhanced Details

Northrop Grumman Space Systems

Circle Image
CEO: Kathy Warden Founded: 2015 Successes: 14 Failures: 0 Pending: 5

Agency Type: Commercial

Northrup Grumman Space Systems designs, builds and delivers space, defence and aviation-related systems to customers around the world. They aquired Orbital ATK in 2018 along with its launchers and ongoing missions.

INFO WIKI

Related News

Spaceflight Now

Cygnus cargo freighter ends mission at International Space Station

A Northrop Grumman Cygnus supply ship departed the International Space Station Saturday after a three-month stay, heading off on the final phase of its mission to deploy a U.S. military tech demo payload and re-enter the atmosphere to disp…

NASA Spaceflight

Northrop Grumman discusses Antares NG-16’s eventful countdown, talks future missions

On August 10, the S.S. Ellison Onizuka launched on an Antares 230+ rocket from Pad-0A at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility. The NG-16 countdown was hampered with helium and ground computer issues leading up to the final T0 mark.

Spaceflight Now

Photos: Antares launches on Northrop Grumman’s 16th space station cargo flight

These images show the liftoff of a Northrop Grumman Antares rocket on Aug. 10 from Wallops Island, Virginia, kicking off an unpiloted resupply mission carrying more than 8,000 pounds of cargo to the International Space Station.

NASA Spaceflight

S.S. Ellison Onizuka Cygnus mission launches safely to ISS

Northrop Grumman launched the NG-16 Cygnus cargo vehicle, the S.S. Ellison Onizuka, to the International Space Station at 18:01:05 EDT / 22:01:05 UTC from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA’s Wallops Island flight facility in Virg…

NASA

NASA TV Coverage Set for Next International Space Station Cargo Launch

NASA and Northrop Grumman are targeting 5:56 p.m. EDT, Tuesday, Aug. 10, for the company’s 16th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station.

Wallops Island, Virginia, USA

Launch Area 0 A


Falcon 9
Success
5 hours, 41 minutes ago
Starlink Group 7-16
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

A batch of 22 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
3 days, 7 hours ago
Starlink Group 6-44
Launch Complex 39A - Kennedy Space Center, FL, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Starship
Success
4 days, 18 hours ago
Integrated Flight Test 3
Orbital Launch Mount A - SpaceX Starbase, TX, USA

Third test flight of the two-stage Starship launch vehicle.


Long March 2C/YZ-1S
Partial Failure
5 days, 19 hours ago
DRO-A/B
Launch Complex 3 (LC-3/LA-1) - Xichang Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Two spacecraft by the Chinese Academy of Sciences designed to perform communication and navigation testing from a Distant Retrograde Orbit (DRO) arou…


KAIROS
Failure
6 days, 6 hours ago
Maiden Flight
Space One Launch Pad - Space Port Kii, Japan

Carried a prototype "quick response" satellite for the Japanese government Cabinet Satellite Intelligence Center, operator of the IGS series of Japan…


Electron
Success
6 days, 17 hours ago
Owl Night Long
Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1B - Onenui Station, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

StriX-3 is a synthetic aperture radar satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company Synspective. It can gather high resolution Earth observation data …


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 1 day ago
Starlink Group 7-17
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
1 week, 1 day ago
Starlink Group 6-43
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral, FL, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
2 weeks ago
Starlink Group 6-41
Space Launch Complex 40 - Cape Canaveral, FL, USA

A batch of 23 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.


Falcon 9
Success
2 weeks ago
Transporter 10 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare)
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

Transporter 10 mission is a dedicated rideshare flight to a sun-synchronous orbit with dozens of small microsatellites and nanosatellites for commerc…