SpaceX CRS-16 is Heading to the International Space Station
The two-stage Falcon 9 launch vehicle lifts off Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station carrying the SpaceX’s Dragon resupply spacecraft to the International Space Station. Liftoff was at 1:16 p.m. EST, Dec. 5, 2018. On its 16th commercial resupply services mission to the space station, Dragon will deliver several science investigations to the space station, including the Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation lidar (GEDI). GEDI will provide high-quality laser ranging observations of the Earth’s forests and topography required to advance the understanding of important carbon and water cycling processes, biodiversity and habitat.
Media Credit: NASA
SpaceX launched its 16th commercial resupply services mission(Abbreviation: CRS mission) A CRS mission is a cargo resupply mission contracted by NASA to deliver supplies and research to the International Space Station on commercial spacecraft as part of the CRS contract with three commercial companies. As part of CRS missions, experiments currently return to Earth on SpaceX Dragon spacecraft that splash down in the ocean. to the International Space Station from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida earlier this afternoon. Scheduled to arrive on Saturday, the Dragon spacecraft is carrying more than 5,600 pounds of research equipment, cargo, and supplies, including more than 20 ISSInternational Space Station National Lab-sponsored experiments.
To learn more about the investigations, research facilities, and launch partners involved in this mission, visit our launch dashboard.