Four astronauts are set to board a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket Saturday for a trip to the International Space Station, and the team has completed a dress rehearsal leading up to the historical launch.
The astronauts, named Crew-1, took the walk through Kennedy Space Center as did Ben Behnken and Dough Hurley in May when they prepared for ‘Launch America’ that brought space flight back to US soil.
Donning the same white, futuristic SpaceX suites, Crew-1 commander Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker and Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi arrived at the complex in two Tesla Model X cars.
The team then emerged from the crew quarters, smiled and waved, and then climbed back in the Teksa’s for the 20-minute ride to Launch Complex 39A -just as they will on November 14 before for the launch at 7:49pm ET.
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Donning the same white, futuristic SpaceX suites, Crew-1 commander Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker and Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi arrived at the complex in two Tesla Model X cars
The Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft have been in place on the launch pad since November 9, waiting for the team to take the epic journey to the International Space Station (ISS)
The rehearsal concluded with the go and no-go poll for Falcon 9 propellant loading, which normally occurs 45 minutes before launch.
The NASA-SpaceX mission was set to launch the early hours of Halloween day, but due to a Falcon 9 engine problem, the event was rescheduled.
And with the mission just days away, NASA astronauts and engineers are prepping.
The team then emerged from the crew quarters, smiled and waved, and then climbed back in the Teksa’s for the 20-minute ride to Launch Complex 39A -just as they will on November 14 before for the launch at 7:49pm ET
The Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft have been in place on the launch pad since November 9, waiting for the team to take the epic journey to the International Space Station
Crew-1 conducted a dress rehearsal, while engineers reviewed preparations and are also keeping a close eye on Tropical Storm Eta that is providing a ‘forecasting challenge.’
The 45th Weather Squadron issued a weather update Wednesday saying ‘Eta, now a hurricane, will remain a stubborn forecasting challenge over the next few days as it moves north very near the west central Florida coast.’
On launch day, the prediction states a 60 percent chance of favorable launch conditions.
Liftoff winds are suggested to be between 12 to 17 miles per hour, with low upper-level wind shear.
SpaceX shared a tweet shortly after the release saying they ‘will continue monitoring weather conditions for liftoff and along the flight path.’
Weather permitting, the four person team will strap into the Crew Dragon capsule they named ‘Resilience’ and soar off to the ISS.
Pictured is Crew-1 commander Michael Hopkins (right, front row), Victor Glover (left, front row), Shannon Walker (left, back row) and Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi (right, back row)
Weather permitting, the four person team will strap into the Crew Dragon capsule they named ‘Resilience’ and soar off to the ISS
Falcon 9 and the Crew Dragon capsule also completed the integrated static fire Wednesday, which is a key prelaunch milestone.
Standing on the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the rocket’s nine Merlin first-stage engines were fired for 7 seconds for this critical but routine test.
NASA and SpaceX are set to reconvene Friday to go over coronavirus protocols, the launch readiness review and conduct final assessment of the flight and crew.
The Crew-1 mission follows the successful launch in May when NASA and SpaceX sent Behnken and Hurley to the ISS.
The astronauts, named Crew-1, took the walk through Kennedy Space Center as did Ben Behnken (right) and Dough Hurley (left) in May when they prepared for ‘Launch America’ that brought space flight back to US soil.
Bob Benhken (back) and Doug Hurley (front) rode to Kennedy Space Center in May in the same Tesla Model X as the Crew-1 team
This mission was the precursor for Saturday’s journey, as the team was tasked with testing the Crew Dragon capsule to validate its performance.
This included tests with the environmental control system, displays, maneuvering thrusters and other technologies.
However, when Behnken and Hurley returned from a two month stay on the ISS, NASA began moving forward with its plans for Crew 1.
The four astronauts in Crew-1 are set to spend six months on the ISS, where they will conduct a number of experiments and perform a range of tasks.
