On Monday, June 20, NASA officials kicked off a test procedure wherein the Cygnus NG CRS-17 spacecraft via Northrop Grumman would be utilized as a propulsion method for the International Space Station. The Cygnus freighter's engines first kicked on at about 11:20 ET on Monday and were intended to last five minutes as the crew analyzed the newfound procedure's viability. Yet, the mission ended up lasting a mere five seconds.
In a press release published after the event, NASA explained that the Cygnus mission was primarily intended to "test the cargocraft's ability to reboost the International Space Station in the future" and that following its failure, "the cause for the abort is understood and under review." Little else is clarified on the matter in the release, as the page goes on to explain that a second attempt will be underway come Saturday, June 25.
The true cause for the abort remains uncertain to the wider public, and, according to Gizmodo, more detailed information is slated for debut on NASA's space station blog later this week. The whole premise behind utilizing Cygnus as a booster for the ISS in the first place arose gradually following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its continued stubbornness in the realm of global aerospace parameters.
To be clear, the ISS does have its own onboard propulsion system. However, it's not exactly the most ideal in necessary positional alterations, which have dramatically increased over the past several years. More often than not, when moving the ISS for specific reasons, such as incoming debris or, more recently, satellites, NASA utilizes Russian-made Progress space capsules as the main boosters for the ISS.
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Not a mere week ago, the Russian Progress 81 was used on the ISS as a way to dodge an incoming projectile in the form of Cosmos 1408. In a show of might and brevity, the Russians tested the potential of an anti-satellite missile last year. It has conveniently caused far more issues in space with its scattered debris roaming about 260 miles above the surface in orbit. On June 16, the ISS crew had to maneuver the spacecraft out of the way of this very incoming debris using the Progress 81, which maintained thrusters for 4 minutes and 34 seconds.
Although, according to NASA's own press release, the ISS crew were "never in any danger," as even without the boost, "the fragment could have passed within around a half mile from the station," the reality here proves the necessity for NASA to find alternatives in its approach to ISS extended propulsion methods, given Russia's threat of leaving the ISS as early as 2025. With Russia's exit from the program, Progress spacecraft would thereby become rather difficult to come by, making any positional ISS alterations rather difficult.
Hence, NASA's more recent Cygnus reboot procedure, clearly didn't go as planned. The aerospace firm did confirm in its press release that a second attempt would be attempted come June 25. If successful, it would mark a brilliant moment in NASA's history as the first time a commercial spacecraft powered the ISS' movement. If Cygnus were to fail, Elon Musk of SpaceX did relay that Dragon could potentially be used as a rebooting spacecraft if necessary.
While Russia has remained bullish in its ploys, others remain skeptical of its threat to leave the ISS. Eric Berger of ArsTechnica, for one, headed a piece that essentially gave better clarity to the words spoken via Russia's space corporation head Dmitry Rogozin, who voiced those threats of leaving the ISS following US sanctions on the country. Berger wrote that Rogozin was merely stating Russia's notice period as opposed to a real threat, adding via sources that "if they drop out of the ISS they lose their space program."
Still, hunting for a better booster for the ISS is certainly a must for NASA. Luckily, while issues with Cygnus seem plentiful, SpaceX may have loaners for the agency, and Russian Progress capsules are sure to be available for some time.
