A Russian Progress freighter, designated Progress 93, is set to launch today, September 11, 2023, carrying 2.8 tons of cargo to the International Space Station (ISS). The freighter will be lifted into orbit aboard a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 11:54 a.m. EDT (15:54 GMT; 8:54 p.m. local time).
Live coverage of the launch will begin at 11:30 a.m. EDT (15:30 GMT) and can be accessed through NASA’s platforms or on Space.com. If all proceeds as planned, Progress 93 is expected to dock with the ISS at the Zvezda service module on Saturday, September 13, 2023, at 1:27 p.m. EDT (17:27 GMT). This mission will deliver essential supplies, including food and propellant, to the astronauts aboard the ISS for the current Expedition 73 mission.
NASA will also provide live coverage of the docking event, starting at 12:30 p.m. EDT (16:30 GMT) on Saturday. Progress 93 is intended to remain attached to the ISS for approximately six months. Following its mission, it will return to Earth filled with waste material, incinerating upon re-entry into the atmosphere.
This launch marks a significant moment in ongoing international cooperation in space exploration, with Russia’s space agency Roscosmos playing a vital role. Following Progress 93’s mission, Northrup Grumman’s Cygnus vehicle is scheduled to launch on Sunday, September 14, 2023, at 6:11 p.m. EDT (22:11 GMT) atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
Both Progress and Cygnus are designed for single-use missions, differing from SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, which is built for recovery and reuse after splashdown in the ocean. As the space community continues to advance, these missions bolster the infrastructure necessary for human presence in low Earth orbit and beyond.
