SpaceX CRS-22

SpaceX plans to reuse the Cargo Dragons up to five times. Since it does not support a crew, the Cargo Dragon launches without SuperDraco abort engines, seats, cockpit controls or the life support system required to sustain astronauts in space.^[2][3] Dragon 2 improves on Dragon 1 in several ways, including lessened refurbishment time, leading to shorter periods between flights.^[4]

The new Cargo Dragon capsules under the NASA CRS Phase 2 contract splash down under parachutes in the Gulf of Mexico rather than the previous recovery zone in the Pacific Ocean west of Baja California under the NASA CRS Phase 1 contract.^[2][4]

T+00:00: Liftoff

T+01:15: Maximum aerodynamic pressure

T+02:30: First stage main engine cutoff (MECO)

T+02:34: Stage separation

T+02:41: Second stage engine start

T+02:48: First stage Boostback Burn

T+05:58: First stage entry burn begins

T+07:22: First stage landing burn

T+07:52: First stage landing on drone ship

T+08:46: Second stage engine cutoff (SECO)

T+11:58: Dragon separation

T+12:35: Dragon nose cone open sequence begins

 

NASA contracted for the CRS-22 mission from SpaceX and therefore determines the primary payload, date of launch, and orbital parameters for the Cargo Dragon.^[5] The total mission payload is 3,328 kg (7,337 lb).

• Science investigations: 920 kg (2,030 lb)
• Vehicle hardware: 345 kg (761 lb)
• Crew supplies: 341 kg (752 lb)
• Spacewalk equipment: 52 kg (115 lb)
• Computer resources: 58 kg (128 lb)
• External payloads: 1,380 kg (3,040 lb) ^[6]

ISS Roll Out Solar Arrays (iROSA)

First pair of new roll-out solar arrays, namely, 2B and 4B; using XTJ Prime space solar cells, based on design tested at ISS in 2017. They will be delivered to the station in the unpressurized trunk of the SpaceX Cargo Dragon CRS-22 spacecraft. A second pair was delivered to the ISS on CRS-26 in late 2022, followed by another pair on CRS-28 due to be delivered in june 2023.^[7][8] The installation of these new solar arrays requires two spacewalks: one to prepare the worksite with a modification kit, on 16 June 2021, and another to install the new panel, on 20 June 2021.^[9]

Additional hardware carried internally includes:

• Catalytic Reactor: legacy unit launching to provide critical sparing support for the water production capability for the environmental control and life support system (ECLSS)
• Commercial Crew Vehicle Emergency Breathing Air Assembly (CEBAA) Regulator Manifold Assembly (RMA): completing the first set of emergency air supply capability, this integrated system supports as many as five crew members for up to 1 hour during an ISS emergency ammonia leak
• Zarya Kurs Electronics Unit: critical hardware for cosmonaut remote-control docking of Russian spacecraft is launching to support planned maintenance activity during 2021
• Potable Water Dispenser (PWD) Filter: major filter assembly used to remove iodine from water consumed by the crew during nominal operations
• Commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) Air Tanks: critical disposable air tanks to support gas resupply for routine cabin repress activities in-orbit
• Iceberg: critical cold stowage capability to support expanded payload operations ^[6]

The new experiments arriving at the orbiting laboratory on the SpaceX CRS-22 mission supports science from human health to high-powered computing, and utilizes the space station as a proving ground for new technologies.^[10]

Among the investigations arriving inside the Dragon's pressurized capsule will be a variety of research experiments and studies, including:

• Develop better pharmaceuticals and therapies for treating kidney disease on Earth
• Using cotton root systems to identify varieties of plants that require less water and pesticides
• Test new portable ultrasound technology in microgravity (Butterfly IQ Ultrasound)^[11]

Two model organism investigations:

• One study will look at bobtail squid as a model to examine the effects of spaceflight on interactions between beneficial microbes and their animal hosts
• Second study will examine tardigrades' adaptation to the harsh environment of space, which could contribute to long-term problem solving for vaccine production, distribution, and storage on Earth

NASA Glenn Research Center studies:^[12]

• Combustion Integration Rack (CIR) Reconfiguration

Student Spaceflight Experiments Program

The Student Spaceflight Experiments Program (SSEP) has five experiments manifested:

• Mission 14B – 3 experiments ^[13]
• Mission 15A – 2 experiments ^[14]

ISS United States National Laboratory

The ISS U.S. National Laboratory is sponsoring more than a dozen payloads with education and commercial partners.^[15] These include:

• Colgate-Palmolive – oral biofilms investigation
• Eli Lilly – investigation to examine the effects of gravity on the physical state and properties of freeze-dried pharmaceutical products

ELaNa 36: One CubeSat is scheduled for deployment on this mission:^[16]

• RamSat – Oak Ridge Public Schools (Robertsville Middle School), Oak Ridge, Tennessee

Nanoracks CubeSat deployments:

• SOAR – University of Manchester, United Kingdom and the DISCOVERER consortium with EU/EC Horizon 2020 funding.^[17]

UNOOSA / JAXA KiboCUBE program:^[18]

• MIR-SAT1 – Mauritius Research and Innovation Council (MRIC)^[19]
• G-SATELLITE 2 – OneTeam, Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (TOCOG)^[20][21]

 

Beginning with returning capsules or lifting bodies under the CRS-2 contract, NASA reports major hardware (failed or expended hardware for diagnostic assessment, refurbishment, repair, or no longer needed) returning from the International Space Station. The SpaceX CRS-22 mission ends on 10 July 2021, this is a two-day delay from the original undocking target of 6 July 2021 as a result of Tropical Storm/Hurricane Elsa causing weather concerns at the splashdown zones,^[22] with re-entry into atmosphere of Earth and splash down in the Gulf of Mexico near the western coast of Florida with 2,404 kg (5,300 lb) of return cargo.

• Catalytic Reactor Developmental Test Objective (DTO): developmental environmental control and life support system (ECLSS) unit returning for testing, teardown, and evaluation (TT&E) to determine the cause of failure and subsequent re-flight
• Urine Processing Assembly (UPA) Distillation Assembly: critical ECLSS orbital replacement unit used for urine distillation, processing, and future use returning for TT&E and refurbishment to support future spares demand
• Sabatier Main Controller: major Sabatier system hardware used in conjunction with the Oxygen Generation System (OGS) for water production needs on-orbit
• Rodent Research Habitats (AEM-X): habitats used during Rodent Research missions returning for refurbishment to support future missions in early 2022
• Nitrogen/Oxygen Recharge System (NORS) Recharge Tank Assembly (RTA): empty gas tanks returning for reuse to support high-pressure gas operations and activities on-orbit ^[6]

• Uncrewed spaceflights to the International Space Station

• NASA
• SpaceX official page for the Dragon spacecraft Archived 12 April 2017 at the Wayback Machine