Solar Arrays Deploy as Cygnus XL Orbits Toward Station
Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL spacecraft deployed its two solar arrays after launching earlier Sunday at 6:11 p.m. EDT on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida to the International Space Station.
Live coverage of the spacecraft’s arrival will begin at 5 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 17, on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and more. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media. The mission is known as NASA’s Northrop Grumman Commercial Resupply Services 23, or Northrop Grumman CRS-23.
NASA astronaut Jonny Kim will capture Cygnus XL using the station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm at approximately 6:35 a.m., and NASA astronaut Zena Cardman is backup. After capture, the spacecraft will be installed on the Unity module’s Earth-facing port and will remain at the space station until March 2026.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @NASASpaceOps and @space_station on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.