Kounotori 7
, also known as HTV-7 is the seventh flight of the H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV), an uncrewed cargo spacecraft launched on 22 September 2018 to resupply the International Space Station. Spacecraft specification. Major changes from previous Kounotori include: To enable HSRC retrieval, the destructive re-entry of Kounotori 7 and the splashdown of HSRC is planned to take place in the northwestern Pacific Ocean near Minami-Tori-shima (Marcus Island), east of Bonin Islands and Northern Mariana Islands, instead of the southern Pacific Ocean used by the previous missions. Reentry capsule. Along with resupplying the ISS, this Kounotori  flight tested the HTV Small Re-entry Capsule (HSRC), a reentry capsule similar in function to the VBK-Raduga carried on board Progress flights to the Mir space station. Essentially a miniaturized HTV-R capsule, it was carried in the pressurized section of the vehicle. After departing from the station, ground control will remotely command Kounotori to release the capsule at an altitude of . The capsule incorporates nitrogen cold gas reaction control system with 3D printed nozzles, and autonomously performs attitude control to mitigate shock during descent. Splash-landing off the coast of the Ogasawara Islands, the capsule will be  retrieved by ship. It was then airlifted to Ibaraki Airport via Minami-Tori-shima, from where the samples was delivered to researchers. The capsule can contain a total of 20 kg of material (5 kg if the payload requires refrigeration). The capsule has a diameter of 84 cm, a height of 66 cm, and a mass of less than 180 kg. Tiger Corporation developed the capsule's double vacuum insulated container by applying technology used in vacuum flasks. Some samples produced in the microgravity environment of the ISS deteriorate easily, thus a quick return to the surface is desired. For  this demonstration flight, samples including ISS-manufactured protein crystals are planned to be placed inside. On 22 October 2015, a high-altitude drop test of the capsule was successfully conducted off the coast of Taiki, Hokkaido. A second test was conducted on 21 September 2016, with conditions and parameters closer to the actual capsule than the previous year's test. The third and fourth drop tests were done in July and November 2017, respectively. Cargo. Kounotori 7 carries about 6200 kg of cargo, consisting of 4300 kg in the pressurized compartment and 1900 kg in the unpressurized compartment. Cargo in  the pressurized compartment (PLC) include: In the Unpressurized Logistic Carrier (ULC), Kounotori 7 carries 6 lithium-ion batteries Orbital Replacement Units (ORUs) for replacing the ISS's existing nickel-hydrogen batteries. The transportation of replacement batteries is a continuation from the previous Kounotori 6, and will continue through to Kounotori 9. Operation. Launch and rendezvous with ISS. Initially Kounotori 7 was scheduled to launch at 22:32 UTC on 10 September 2018, but was postponed due to bad weather forecast at a ground tracking station. It was rescheduled to 13 September 2918 at 21:20 UTC, but adverse weather forecast at the  launch site pushed one day further to 14 September at 20:59:14 UTC. During the preflight check, a problem was found in the blowoff valve of the launch vehicle second stage oxygen tank, and the launch was scrubbed. After the problem was resolved, the launch was rescheduled to 21 September 2018 at 18:15 UTC. Bad weather forecast pushed it one day to 17:52 UTC on 22 September 2018. The H-IIB launch vehicle carrying Kounotori 7 launched at 17:52:27 UTC on 22 September 2018. It arrived at the proximity of International Space Station on 27 September 2018, and the station's  Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) grappled it at 11:36 UTC. Operation while berthed to ISS. Exposed Pallet (EP), which carries the replacement batteries for ISS, was extracted from Kounotori's Unpressurized Logistics Carrier (ULC) by the SSRMS (Canadarm2) and transferred to the Mobile Base System (MBS) Payload/Orbital Replacement Unit Accommodations (POA) on 28 September 2018. Due to the launch failure of Soyuz MS-10, planned extravehicular activity to replace the batteries of ISS could not be performed while the Kounotori 7 was berthed to ISS. The Exposed Pallet will remain at the ISS after departure of Kounotori 7. Departure  from ISS and reentry to the Earth atmosphere. Kounotori 7 was demated from Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM) of Harmony module by SSRMS at 23:32 UTC on 6 November 2018, and it was released into orbit on 7 November 2018, 16:50 UTC. After a series of trajectory control manoeuvres, the final deorbit burn completed at 21:14 UTC, on 10 November 2018. Separation of HTV Small Re-entry Capsule (HSRC) from Kounotori 7 was confirmed at 21:24 UTC. Estimated time of the reentry to Earth atmosphere (at 120 km altitude) of Kounotori 7 was 21:38 UTC, and the splashdown of residual debris  at 21:48 - 22:12 UTC. Splashdown of HSRC was confirmed at 22:06 UTC, and it was retrieved by the recovery ship at 02:25, on 11 November 2018. The ship arrived at Minami-Tori-Shima on 19:50 UTC, on 12 November 2018. The retrieved specimen was transported by aircraft to Ibaraki Airport, and finally arrived at Tsukuba Space Center on 13 November 2018, at 00:42 UTC.