Russian Cargo Vessel to Bring Supplies to ISS After Falcon 9 Rocket Failure

The Russian Progress cargo vessel will be launched on Friday from the Baikonur Space Center to deliver supplies to ISS.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Russian Progress-M28M cargo vessel will be launched on Friday from the Baikonur Space Center to deliver supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) after the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying a US Dragon cargo ship failed to fulfil its mission.

"Transport Cargo Vessel Progress-M28M will deliver 2,381 kilograms [5,249 pounds] of cargo to the International Space Station, including fuel, air, food and equipment," the Mission Control outside Moscow said.

On Sunday, the SpaceX CRS-7 Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Dragon cargo ship with supplies for the ISS exploded just three minutes after it lifted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

SpaceX founder Elon Musk said there was an overpressure in the liquid oxygen tank of the Falcon 9 rocket.

Dragon is currently the only spacecraft capable of returning cargo from the ISS back to Earth.

The ISS is currently manned by a three-man crew, which consists of an American and two Russians — Commander Gennady Padalka and one-year crew members NASA (US National Aeronautics and Space Administration) astronaut Scott Kelly and cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko.