June 04, 2021

Andrew Campbell 

A brand-new SpaceX booster, the reusable Falcon 9 rocket, launched on June 3 carrying the CRS-22 Dragon cargo ship at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA.

According to NASA's Joel Montalbano, who serves as the Program Manager for the International Space Station Program Office, the flight will deliver around 1,950 kilograms (4,300 pounds) of pressurized cargo to the International Space Station. The Dragon spacecraft took off with new supplies for the station's astronauts and experiment equipment, as well as two new roll-out solar arrays for future spacewalks.

Along with Falcon 9 rocket there are notably 128 baby glow-in-the-dark bobtail squids. They are prepared as part of the Understanding of Microgravity on Animal-Microbe Interactions (UMAMI) study, which observed bobtail squid and bacteria to examine the effects of spaceflight on interactions between beneficial microbes and their animal hosts.

In addition, for the Cell Science-04 experiment, 5,000 tardigrades, often known as water bears, are loaded. These species can withstand harsh conditions. The mission's goal is to figure out which genes are involved in water bear adaption and survival in these high-stress situations. The findings could help scientists better grasp the stress factors that humans face in space.

In the early morning of June 5, SpaceX Dragon was set to connect with the International Space Station autonomously. These astronauts would spend around a month at the SpaceX station.

Photo:webshot.