NASA To Livestream The Orbital ATK's Cygnus Spacecraft Launch In 360 Degrees On April 18

First Posted: Apr 17, 2017 05:27 AM EDT

NASA will livestream the launching of the Orbital ATK's Cygnus spacecraft in 360 degrees this coming April 18, tomorrow. This will be the first live broadcast of the rocket launch.

Orbital ATK's Cygnus spacecraft will carry cargo to resupply the International Space Station (ISS). These include over 7,600 pounds (3,447 kg) of science research, hardware to the orbiting laboratory and crew supplies. The spacecraft will be launched on a ULA Atlas V rocket at 11 a.m. EDT (3:11 p.m. GMT) on April 18, 2017, from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, according to VR Focus.

Orbital ATK usually flies aboard with Antares launch vehicle, yet this time it will fly aboard the ULA's Atlas V rocket, which is already the third time. This is basically essential as it needed the more powerful booster to carry cargo to the orbiting outpost. It will be the spacecraft's seventh time to send cargo to ISS. It is part of the company's $1.9 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract with the American space agency, NASA, according to Spaceflight Insider.

Frank De Mauro, Vice President and General Manager of the Advanced Programs Division at Orbital ATK, said that as of now, Cygnus spacecraft is occupied with about 7,500 pounds (3,402 kg) of cargo that will be launched and delivered to the International Space Station. He further said that among the cargo, there are supplies of crew and hardware for the space station.

It also includes the scientific experiments that the crew needed and to perform such as the SAFFIRE-III, which is a space combustion experiment from NASA's Glenn Research Center. DeMauro said that this remains on the cargo module on the spacecraft after all the cargo is removed. Once all the cargo was disposed, they will pack around that.

The livestream of this rocket launch could be viewed on the NASA Television YouTube Channel on April 18, 2017, 10 minutes prior to liftoff. This 360-degree stream could let the viewers get a pads-eye view.