Unmanned Japanese Spacecraft Heads for Destruction After Release From Space Station - NASA
Astronauts in the International Space Station set free the Japanese spacecraft Kounotori on its eighth and final resupply mission, filled with trash and old batteries, as shown on a Friday NASA webcast
"There's a series of burns once it's separated from the robotic arm that will take it away from the international space station," a webcast narrator said. "From there it will be a safe distance away from the international space station to re-enter earth's atmosphere and burn up over the Pacific Ocean Saturday night US time.
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The cargo craft spent five weeks attached to the orbiting laboratory following a September 24 launch from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan and the delivery of four tons of supplies, including batteries that were later installed by the first all-woman team pf spacewalking astronauts.
The spacecraft and its cargo of trash and old nickel-hydrogen batteries will disintegrate during re-entry, NASA said. Japan is preparing a replacement cargo ship for launch in 2020, according to the Japanese Space Agency.