CONTEXT:

• A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket successfully launched a Cygnus spacecraft on 17 April 2019 carrying 3.5 metric tons of cargo bound for the International Space Station (ISS).
• The Antares lifted off from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport.
• The Cygnus is scheduled to be captured by the ISS’s robotic arm.
• It will remain at the station for about 90 days.

BACKGROUND:

• The Spacecraft carried about 7,600 pounds of supplies and scientific experiments to the station.
• The mice aboard Cygnus are at the core of one such study, which aims to test the effectiveness of an anti-tetanus vaccine.
• The rodents are split into two groups of 20; half will receive the vaccine in space and the other 20 will not receive the vaccine.
• Scientists will study the mice to see how the animals responded to the vaccine once they are back on Earth.