Cygnus NG-23
NG-23 shortly before it was captured by the Canadarm2 | |
| Names | CRS NG-23 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | ISS resupply |
| Operator | Northrop Grumman |
| COSPAR ID | 2025-208A |
| SATCAT no. | 65616 |
| Mission duration | 182 days, 10 hours and 4 minutes (in progress) |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | S.S. William "Willie" C. McCool |
| Spacecraft type | Cygnus XL |
| Manufacturer |
|
| Launch mass | 10,200 kg (22,500 lb) |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | September 14, 2025, 22:11:49 UTC (6:11:49 pm EDT) |
| Rocket | Falcon 9 Block 5 (B1094‑4) |
| Launch site | Cape Canaveral, SLC‑40 |
| Contractor | SpaceX |
| End of mission | |
| Decay date | March 14, 2026 (planned) |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Inclination | 51.66° |
| Berthing at ISS | |
| Berthing port | Unity nadir |
| RMS capture | September 18, 2025, 11:24 UTC |
| Berthing date | September 18, 2025, 14:10 UTC |
| Unberthing date | November 24, 2025 |
| Time berthed | 66 days, 9 hours and 50 minutes |
| Reberthing with ISS | |
| Reberthing port | Unity nadir |
| Reberthing date | December 1, 2025 |
| Unreberthing date | March 12, 2026, 04:00 UTC |
| RMS release | March 12, 2026, 11:06 UTC |
| Time reberthed | 101 days, 11 hours and 6 minutes |
| Cargo | |
| Mass | 4,911 kg (10,827 lb) |
Mission patch | |
NG-23 is a cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS) under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract. Operated by Northrop Grumman, the flight successfully launched on September 14, 2025, aboard a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket. The spacecraft is named S.S. William "Willie" C. McCool in honor of the NASA astronaut who died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster in 2003.
The mission debuted the Cygnus XL spacecraft configuration, featuring a pressurized cargo module measuring 7.89 meters (25.9 ft) in length, with a payload capacity of 5,000 kilograms (11,000 lb), an increase of 19.5%, and a pressurized cargo volume of 36 cubic metres (1,300 cu ft), an increase of 15.5%.
It is the third Cygnus launch on a Falcon 9, arranged after Northrop Grumman's Antares 230+ was retired in 2023 due to supply chain disruptions stemming from the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A successor, the Antares 300, is under development with no Russian or Ukrainian components.