Posted on 10/22/2013 9:01:03 AM PDT by BenLurkin
Commercial space took another major leap forward this morning, Oct 22., when the privately developed Cygnus cargo vehicle undocked from the International Space Station on its historic maiden flight and successfully completed a highly productive month long stay during its demonstration mission – mostly amidst the US government shutdown.
The Cygnus was maneuvered about 10 meters (30 feet) away from the station and held in the steady grip of the stations fully extended robotic arm when astronauts Karen Nyberg and Luca Parmitano unlatched the arm and released the ship into free space at 7:31 a.m. EDT today – signifying an end to joint flight operations.
The next Cygnus resupply vessel is due to blast off in mid-December and is already loaded with new science experiments for microgravity research and assorted gear and provisions.
(Excerpt) Read more at universetoday.com ...
Cygnus Un-Berthed From Space Station | Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axWmdX6LkUc
The most exciting thing about this is that space has historically been a government project by both money, technical skill and purview. No that’s changed.
Think about applying the same criteria to poverty programs, Social Security, environmental protection, et al.
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