A Japanese cargo freighter, which undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) two days ago, will be de-orbited and sunk in the Pacific Ocean on Friday morning, a spokesman for the Mission Control said.
Kounotori 3, also known as HTV-3, is the third Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle designed to deliver supplies to the orbital station. It arrived at the ISS on July 27, carrying about four metric tons of supplies and equipment.
The spokesman said that engines will be switched on at 9:26 Moscow time (5:26 GMT) to bring the space freighter to a halt and after that it will enter the Earth’s atmosphere.
“Following that the fragments of the spacecraft, which did not burn in the Earth’s atmosphere, will splash in the non-navigational area of the Pacific Ocean,” he said.
The 16.5-ton spacecraft carries waste material from the ISS, including used experiment equipment and used clothes.
Kounotori 3 was scheduled for detachment on September 6, but the maneuver was postponed due to emergency repairs on the U.S. module of the ISS.
