Japanese Cargo Ship Launches to Space Station

A Japanese resupply ship, the HTV-3 “Kountouri” (White Stork) launched Saturday to the International Space Station, lifting off on an H-IIB into overcast skies from the island of Tanegashima at 02:06 UTC. About 15 minutes after the launch, the cargo ship was released from the rocket and is now in orbit catching up to the space station. The Kountouri contains supplies such as food, clothing and equipment for experiments.


The cargo should reach the ISS on July 27, where Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide will be waiting. Hoshide came aboard last week with Veteran Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, NASA astronaut Suni Williams, arriving on a Soyuz spacecraft.