Apr 18, 2014 09:55 AM EDT
NASA Supply Mission Could Be Delayed Again Due to Storms

NASA hopes to deliver 2.5 tons of vital station supplies to the International Space Station today and has scheduled a 3:25 p.m. launch.

But inclement weather may delay the trip once again, The Associated Press reported. NASA tried to launch the Dragon commercial supplier on Monday, but the mission had to be postponed after problems with a leaky rocket valve, which has since been replaced.

The cargo ship holds food for the astronauts living on the ISS as well as a new spacesuit and extra replacement parts for spacesuits. The Dragon's most important supply is needed material to repair a backup computer that failed last Friday, according to the AP.

The astronauts plan to conduct a spacewalk and fix the computer during the next few days.

Even though NASA announced that it was suspending most work with Russia in light of the Ukraine conflict, the American space agency has renewed a contract with Russia to transport U.S. astronauts to the ISS, according to The Washington Post.

In exchange for six seats on Russia's Soyuz spacecraft and other for the mission, the U.S. is handing over $457.9 million to Russia in spite of continuing sanctions.

After the American space shuttle fleet was retired in 2011, the U.S. has been dependent on Russia to transport NASA astronauts to the ISS.

Earlier this month, the U.S. space agency appealed for more funding to become independent of Russian ties.

"NASA is laser focused on a plan to return human spaceflight launches to American soil, and end our reliance on Russia to get into space," said a NASA blog post shared on Google+. "This has been a top priority of the Obama Administration's for the past five years, and had our plan been fully funded, we would have returned American human spaceflight launches--and the jobs they support--back to the United States next year."

See Now: OnePlus 6: How Different Will It Be From OnePlus 5?

 PREVIOUS POST
NEXT POST 

EDITOR'S PICK    

Hyundai to Invest $16.1 Billion for EV Business; Sets Annual Sales Goal of 1.87M Electric Cars by 2030

World's Most Expensive and Most Heavily-optioned Porsche 928 GTS is Coming Home to the U.S.

Major Boost as Tesla Giga Berlin Facility in Final Phase of Approval Process; Delivery Event Set This Month

Audi Looking for e-tron Electric Vehicles to Spur Car Brand's Growth in India in 2022

Toyota Offers Free EV Charging to Owners of 2023 bZ4X After Partnership Agreement with EVgo

2022 Suzuki Baleno Finally Unveiled in India: What are the Specs and Features of this City Car?