SpaceX’s first four space launches for NASA will have to wait at least an extra day before they can start.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and “Crew Dragon” capsule are scheduled to be launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to the International Space Station on Saturday (November 14). The mission, called Crew-1, will be launched before 7:27pm Eastern Standard Time on Sunday night (November 16, 0027 GMT) because of the unacceptable weather for the rocket recovery operation, although 70% Good launch weather opportunity.
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced the delay on Twitter, citing “overland wind and recovery operations”
Live Update: SpaceX’s Crew-1 astronaut launches for NASA
Update: Due to onshore winds and recovery operations, @NASA and @SpaceX aim to launch the Crew-1 mission to @Space_Station with astronauts at 7:27 pm Eastern Time on November 15th. The flying astronaut on Crew 2 was reused. #LaunchAmerica November 13, 2020
Bradenstein wrote on Twitter: “The first stage booster program will be reused to fly astronauts on Crew-2.” SpaceX’s next astronaut space mission is Crew-2, The current goal is to launch on March 30, so ensuring that its booster returns safely to Earth is the key.
SpaceX’s Crew-1 mission will launch NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins, Shannon Walker and Japan’s Aeronautics and Space Administration astronaut Noguchi Soichi, and will carry out a six-month mission on the International Space Station. This mission is SpaceX’s Crew Dragon space shuttle’s first operational flight for NASA and the company’s first four-person flight.
The mission was originally scheduled to launch on October 23, and then postponed to October 31. Last month, SpaceX and NASA postponed the flight until mid-November to allow time to replace the two rocket engines on the mission’s Falcon 9 booster.
related: SpaceX Crew-1 astronaut mission in the photo
The 24-hour launch delay means that Crew-1 astronauts need more time to travel to the space station.
If SpaceX launches the mission on Saturday, crew 1 astronaut will arrive at the station early on Sunday morning after 8.5 hours of travel due to its location. Due to the one-day delay, the crew 1 mission will now take about three times as long.
Steve Stitch, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Manager, told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday (November 10): “It’s about 27 hours from launch to docking. “That’s just because The arrangement of orbital mechanics. “
According to the forecast of the US Space Force, the weather forecast for launch on Sunday is only worse than that on Saturday, with a 60% chance of good weather.
SpaceX is one of two commercial companies with multi-billion dollar contracts that are designed to enable astronauts to travel to and from NASA’s space station. Another company, Boeing, will use the Atlas V rocket of the United Launch Alliance to launch astronauts on its Starliner spacecraft.
SpaceX first launched a manned space shuttle to NASA on May 30. The mission, called Demo-2, lasted two months and carried two astronauts to and from the station.
You can watch Crew-1 launched by SpaceX for NASA on Space.com starting at 3:15 pm Eastern Time (1915 GMT) on Sunday.
Email tariq Malik to tmalik@space.com or follow him @tariqjmalik. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Instagram.
