Japanese Cargo Vehicle Attached to Space Station
HOUSTON (NASA PR)_ — Ground controllers successfully installed the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Kounotori 8 H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV-8) to the Earth-facing port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module at 10:09 a.m. EDT.
Named Kounotori, meaning “white stork” in Japanese, the craft delivered six new lithium-ion batteries and corresponding adapter plates that will replace aging nickel-hydrogen batteries for two power channels on the station’s far port truss segment. The batteries will be installed through a series of robotics and spacewalks the station’s crew members will conduct later this year.
Additional experiments on board HTV-8 include an upgrade to the Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF-L), a small-sized satellite optical communication system (SOLISS), and a payload for testing the effects of gravity on powder and granular material (Hourglass).
For updates about the crew’s activities on the unique orbiting laboratory, visit: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/. Get breaking news, images and features from the station on Instagram at: @iss and on Twitter @Space_Station and @ISS_Research.
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If NASA wants to get the the price lowered for space access, esp. prior to going to the moon, then we need to grow the ISS with number living there. It is long past time for NASA to X-prize for 2-3 habitats to attach to ISS, vet them and then allow private space to sell rides/living quarters on these. In fact, by adding habitat(s) to ISS, it would be possible to pull the living quarters out of the main ISS area and increase the science that can be done. And if BA330 is included, it would isolate the noise so that it would be possible for shifts to be done (though russia might say no).