MIAMI: SpaceX is poised to launch an unmanned cargo ship toward the International Space Station Monday, including a super-computer that could direct astronauts on future deep-space missions.The liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket, carrying the Dragon cargo ship, is planned for 12:31 pm (1631 GMT) from Cape Canaveral, Florida.The weather forecast is 70 percent favorable for launch.The mission is the 12th official trip for SpaceX, which has a $1.6 billion contract with NASA to supply the astronauts living in orbit over 20 such back-and-forth journeys.Final preparations are made to the Falcon 9 SpaceX rocket on pad 39A for Monday's scheduled launch at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Sunday, Aug. 13, 2017. The spacecraft is set for a cargo delivery mission to the International Space Station. Messages from Mars to Earth would be delayed from between four minutes to 24 minutes one-way, depending on the distance between the planets, according to the European Space Agency. "Such a long communication lag would make any on-the-ground exploration challenging and potentially dangerous if astronauts are met with any mission critical scenarios that they're not able to solve themselves," said HPE senior vice president Alain Andreoli in a statement.The new super-computer aims to provide "sophisticated onboard computing resources that are capable of extended periods of uptime," he added, describing the year-long effort as "the first step in that direction. Fox Foundation, which developed the research project.Other experiments on board include a stem cell investigation for growing new lung tissue, and equipment for growing vegetables in space.

Source: Economic Times August 14, 2017 05:59 UTC