HTV-4 Arrives at the ISS

[Mr Shifty]

Tomorrow, Friday morning, 10am GMT (6am EST) you can watch live the rendezvous of HTV-4 with the International Space Station and grapple of it with the Canadarm. Installation is scheduled for 4 hours later:

Current, continuously updating positions of HTV-4 and the ISS are here: http://www.n2yo.com/?s=39221|25544

[legoheli]

It's interesting how the nationalized agencies have a long waiting period from capture to berthing (as always) and SpaceX has a "Get 'er done"-attitude where the Dragon is installed as soon as possible rather than just hanging it there.

I guess it is some sort of desire to be careful, but still, 4 hours is quite a wait when the HTV is captured.

[PakledHostage]

I watched both the ISS and HTV-4 fly over twice this evening. I was lucky to have two opportunities that were both 6 minutes long. During the first pass, HTV-4 was about 1.5 thumb widths behind the ISS. During the second pass, it was about 1/2 the width of my little finger behind (as viewed with my arm outstretched). On both passes, HTV-4's brightness flared up for a second or two while it was in the western part of the sky.

I tried to take photos, but they mostly didn't work out. It would have been cool if I'd managed to catch the flare. The one below is the best I was able to achieve. It isn't much to write home about... The faint bit at the beginning of the bright light streak is HTV-4. The bright streak is, of course, the ISS. The two blend together because they are on the same trajectory, as viewed from the surface.

[nothke]

The beer can is almost there!! Just a few more meters

http://www.ustream.tv/nasahdtv

[Mr Shifty]

I watched both the ISS and HTV-4 fly over twice this evening. I was lucky to have two opportunities that were both 6 minutes long. During the first pass, HTV-4 was about 1.5 thumb widths behind the ISS. During the second pass, it was about 1/2 the width of my little finger behind (as viewed with my arm outstretched). On both passes, HTV-4's brightness flared up for a second or two while it was in the western part of the sky.

I tried to take photos, but they mostly didn't work out. It would have been cool if I'd managed to catch the flare. The one below is the best I was able to achieve. It isn't much to write home about... The faint bit at the beginning of the bright light streak is HTV-4. The bright streak is, of course, the ISS. The two blend together because they are on the same trajectory, as viewed from the surface.

Very nice. I've been catching the ISS in the evenings over the past week or so, but it's not not going to pass close enough to me for a couple weeks now.

[Tommygun]

I think the HTV is a lot heavier than the dragon, so maybe they need to bring it in slower?

I got the whole family out twice to see the ISS pass over head earlier this week.

Was surprised how bright it was the first night, but it did pass over just after sunset.

Forgot the camera both times, ugg!

[Mr Shifty]

Here's the arrival and grapple with Canadarm2:

And here's the berthing with the CBM on the nadir side of Harmony:

[astropapi1]

I love to see these things.

Shame I was at school ATM.

[nothke]

[Kerbal01]

The spacecraft reminds me of the ATV.

[Mr Shifty]

The spacecraft reminds me of the ATV.

They're about the same size and shape, but the ATV docks to the ROS instead of the USOS (different docking mechanism), docks automatically rather than controlled approach plus Canadarm grabble like the HTV, and has 4 extendable solar panels rather than solar panels wrapped around the surface. They both have the same number of main engines and attitude control thrusters, but the ATV's thrusters are twice as powerful.

[nothke]

ATV and HTV have different functions. HTV actually docks to the Japanese segment. It has a bigger unpressurised segment which typically houses external pallets for the Japanese segment so it supplies it with experiments. It also carries 8 ISPR racks in the pressurized segment which can only pass through CBM ports, so they can't be transported into ATV or ROS. On the other hand ATV mostly transports liquids: water and propellant for the orbit keeping engines. These are their differences, but still, they both can carry lots of other goods like food or spare parts. Both of them are also used for taking the garbage out cause they burn up in the atmosphere.