Russian Cargo Spacecraft From ISS Reaches Fiery Climax Upon Entering Earth's Atmosphere Few Hours Post-Undocking

A MS-23 Russian Progress cargo spacecraft that undocked and left the International Space Station (ISS) ended up burning as it tried to enter the atmosphere of the Earth.

Russian Cargo Spacecraft's Fiery Climax

The Progress MS-23 spacecraft undocked and left the International Space Station (ISS) on November 29. It carried household waste and old equipment inside it.

Just four hours post-undocking, Jasmin Moghbeli, a NASA astronaut, was able to get the location of the spacecraft and snap it as it burned up upon entering Earth's atmosphere.

Moghbeli explains in a post that the event took place faster than she thought and stayed visible for just two to three minutes.

Russian space agency Roscosmos reported on Wednesday that the majority of the craft and the contents it carried were incinerated high above the planet. However, some materials ended up landing on the Pacific Ocean.

Cargo Spacecraft

These kinds of fiery reentries are the standard protocol for cargo craft that cannot be reused and that depart from the ISS. Two out of the three craft that are used for freight transport, the Cygnus vehicle of Northrop Gumman and the Russian Progress capsule, are routinely disposed of after delivering supplies and when room on the docking ports of the ISS is needed to welcome new deliveries.

The Cygnus craft has a Pressurized Cargo Module and a Service Module. These can carry equipment, scientific experiments, and crew supplies to low-Earth orbit. Its Service Module integrated advanced avionics that enable completely autonomous operations.

Unlike the other two crafts, SpaceX's Dragon capsule, which is the third craft employed for cargo runs, can safely return to the Earth and pull off a safe splashdown. It is suitable for reuse. In fact, at present, it has already pulled off 43 launches, 20 reflights, and 38 ISS visits.

The Dragon craft is also able to carry up to 7 passengers to and from the orbit of Earth. It serves as the first private craft that can bring humans to the ISS.

Moreover, just last Friday, another Progress spacecraft was deployed from Kazakhstan's Baikonur Cosmodrome over a Soyuz 2.1a rocket. The craft carries over three tons of fuel, food, and other crucial supplies for cosmonauts and astronauts aboard the ISS. More specifically, it brought 1,135 pounds of propellant, 926 pounds of water, 88 pounds of nitrogen, and 3,423 pounds of crew and equipment supplies.

This comes as part of the mission Expedition 70. The uncrewed craft reached the ISS on December 3, replenishing the space crew.

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