A record 6.6 tonnes of cargo were hurtling towards the International Space Station after being blasted into orbit by a European rocket from French Guiana. <\/p>\n
The space freighter with food, water, oxygen, science experiments and special treats for the ISS astronauts was launched on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe's spaceport in Kourou as planned at 6:52:11 pm (21:52:11 GMT). <\/p>\n
The robot craft dubbed Albert Einstein separated from its launcher an hour after liftoff, somewhere over New Zealand, and entered orbit at an altitude of 260 kilometres (160 miles). <\/p>\n
Just over half an hour later, it deployed four energy-generating solar panels to start its autonomous navigation, guided by starlight, to the space station. <\/p>\n
\"This is it. Everything is fine, we have the power, we have the antennas, everything we need to go to the ISS,\" European Space Agency director general Jean-Jacques Dordain announced at the control centre in Kourou. <\/p>\n
The unmanned vessel is set to dock with the ISS on June 15 at an altitude of about 400 kilometres (250 miles) above the planet -- at a speed of some 28,000 kilometres (18,000 miles) per hour. <\/p>\n
At nearly 20.2 tonnes, ESA's fourth and penultimate cargo delivery to the ISS is the heaviest spacecraft ever lifted by an Ariane rocket. <\/p>\n
It also marked the 55th consecutive succesful launch by an Ariane 5, according to the Astrium space company which builds the lifeline craft. <\/p>\n
The robot space freighter is the size of a double-decker bus -- 10 metres (33 feet) long and 4.5 metres (15 feet) in diameter. <\/p>\n
It boasts the largest assortment of goods yet brought to the ISS by an Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) -- a total of 1,400 individual items that include clothes, tools and enough food for several months. <\/p>\n
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View original post here: A record 6.6 tonnes of cargo were hurtling towards the International Space Station after being blasted into orbit by a European rocket from French Guiana. The space freighter with food, water, oxygen, science experiments and special treats for the ISS astronauts was launched on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe's spaceport in Kourou as planned at 6:52:11 pm (21:52:11 GMT). Continue reading
\nEurope launches record cargo for space station<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"