SpaceX launched its 35th NASA resupply mission from Florida on 13 October. Dragon carries equipment for microgravity experiments, crew supplies plus two arrays that will complete the station’s solar upgrade. Earlier coverage described health research planned for the mission; the new development is that the cargo has reached orbit. Docking, installation of the arrays and findings from the experiments are later stages.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted the Dragon cargo spacecraft from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 13 October for NASA’s 35th commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station. NASA’s post-launch announcement confirms that research equipment, crew supplies and station hardware are in orbit. Earlier mission previews described the experiments scheduled to fly; the new event in this account is the launch itself.[1]
The cargo of about 2,900 kilograms includes equipment to investigate artificial-retina manufacture in microgravity, three-dimensional heart tissue models, a glass-formation experiment and brain organoids. Organoids are laboratory-grown tissue models; sending them to orbit is not a treatment result for people with Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s disease. The equipment has to be operated at the station before researchers can gather new measurements relevant to manufacturing or disease studies on Earth.[1]
Dragon also carries two roll-out solar arrays that complete the station’s planned set for the International Space Station. The arrays are intended to raise its electricity output and support research operations, and installation by astronauts is scheduled for a subsequent spacewalk. NASA plans for Dragon to dock autonomously with the station’s Harmony module on 15 October. Docking and installation are separate milestones after launch; the launch announcement does not say either has already happened.[1]
