CHAPTER 14 DAY IN THE LIFE: VITAL VISITING VEHICLES—KEEPING THE REMOTE OUTPOST CREWED AND OPERATING 236 Center in Toulouse, France. Each ATV carried cargo to the ISS and disposed of trash from the ISS via destructive reentry. The ATV was able to deliver 8,000 kg (17,637 lbs) of supplies, including dry and wet cargo with propellant for the re-boost and refueling of the station, and docked to the aft docking port of the RS. H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV) Kounotori (White Stork)—Japan launches the HTV from the Tanegashima Space Center in Tanegashima, Japan, and controls it from the HTV Control Center in Tsukuba, Japan. The HTV carries cargo to the ISS and disposes of trash from the ISS via destructive reentry. The HTV is captured by the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) and is then berthed to the USOS, as shown in Figure 2. Each HTV can deliver approximately 7,600 kilograms (16,800 lbs) of cargo, including external cargo transfer capability. Figure 2. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Kounotori HTV-5 is seen berthed to the ISS (vertical, left side of image). The external CALometric Electron Telescope experiment, which will search for signatures of dark matter, is seen being extracted from the unpressurized section by the station’s robotic arm, Canadarm2. An aurora over the Earth limb is visible in the background. Photo is from August 25, 2015. Dragon—Developed by the commercial company Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX), Dragon launches from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and is controlled from the SpaceX Mission Control Center in Hawthorne, California. Dragon carries cargo to the ISS and returns cargo and science via splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. As with HTV, Dragon is captured by the SSRMS and berthed to the USOS, as shown in Figure 3. Dragon can transport approximately 5,400 kg (12,000 lbs) of cargo, including some items externally in its exposed “trunk.” Figure 3. View of the berthed SpaceX Dragon Commercial Resupply Services-3 spacecraft on April 26, 2014, Canadarm2 SSRMS, and portions of the forward ISS in front of an orbital dawn.