Video: Japan’s Kounotori H-II Transfer Vehicle-6 Launches on Resupply Mission to the ISS
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s H-IIB rocket launched Dec. 9 from the Tanegashima (pron: Tan-uh-GAH-shuh-mah) Space Center in southern Japan carrying the unpiloted “Kounotori” H-II Transfer Vehicle-6 (HTV-6) to orbit to begin a four-day journey to the International Space Station.
The resupply craft is loaded with some 4 ½ tons of food, supplies and experiments for the Expedition 50 crewmembers on the complex, including a set of new lithium-ion batteries to enhance the station’s power supply that will be installed during a series of robotic operations and spacewalks planned for December and January.