NASA is reassessing its upcoming resupply missions to the International Space Station (ISS) following potential damage to a Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo spacecraft. The agency announced on March 5 that damage was discovered on the shipping container used to transport the spacecraft’s pressurized cargo module to its Florida launch site. Engineers are now inspecting the module to determine if the damage extends to the spacecraft itself and whether it will impact the mission timeline.
The space station's Canadian robotic arm grabs a Northrop Grumman Cygnus cargo spacecraft launched in August 2024. Credit: NASA
The affected mission, designated NG-22, is currently scheduled for launch in June. However, during a March 7 briefing about the upcoming Crew-10 mission, NASA officials acknowledged that it is still unclear if the incident will lead to delays.
“I expect that we’ll have to have follow-on discussions and assessments to determine if there is spacecraft damage or any impacts to the overall mission schedule,” said Dana Weigel, NASA’s ISS program manager.
Northrop Grumman confirmed that the damage occurred during a commercial shipping accident but emphasized that inspections are ongoing. “We are assessing the condition of the Pressurized Cargo Module and will ensure NASA is informed of any impact to the mission,” said Dan Leone, a spokesperson for the company.
NG-22 had already faced delays before this incident. Originally set for launch in February, the mission was postponed due to an avionics issue that had not been widely publicized.
NASA Adjusts Dragon Cargo Mission
In response to the uncertainty surrounding NG-22, NASA has modified the manifest for SpaceX’s next cargo Dragon mission, SpX-32, scheduled for late April. To ensure the ISS has adequate supplies, NASA will replace some planned science experiments with food and other consumables.
“The real challenge has been the large movement of our cargo missions,” Weigel explained. She added that had NASA been aware of NG-22’s delays sooner, more consumables could have been included in previous missions last fall.
NASA has not disclosed how many research payloads will be removed from SpX-32 to accommodate additional supplies. For reference, the previous Dragon resupply mission, SpX-31 in November, carried 961 kilograms of crew supplies and 917 kilograms of science investigations. The SpX-30 mission in March 2024 carried 545 kilograms of crew supplies and 1,135 kilograms of science investigations.
Shortened Crew Handover to Conserve Supplies
To further manage resources aboard the ISS, NASA has decided to shorten the typical handover period between Crew-10 and Crew-9. Crew-10 is set to launch on March 12 and dock with the ISS early on March 13. Instead of the usual five-day overlap, Crew-9 will undock as soon as March 16.
This adjustment is meant to conserve consumables during the brief period when the ISS will host 11 crew members. “What that really does for us is open up more undock opportunities,” Weigel said. “It gives us more flexibility to find a good weather opportunity for Crew-9’s return while minimizing how long we have additional crew on board.”
With mission schedules in flux, NASA continues to monitor the situation closely, balancing spacecraft availability, crew rotations, and cargo logistics to maintain smooth operations aboard the ISS.
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