Category: SpaceX

Behnken and Cassidy Conclude Ten Spacewalks Each

NASA spacewalkers (from left) Bob Behnken and Chris Cassidy set up the outside of the Tranquility module for the future installation of the NanoRacks airlock.
NASA spacewalkers (from left) Bob Behnken and Chris Cassidy set up the outside of the Tranquility module for the future installation of the NanoRacks airlock.

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Chris Cassidy concluded their spacewalk at 12:41 p.m. EDT, after six hours and 29 minutes. The two NASA astronauts completed a number of tasks designed to upgrade International Space Station systems.

They began by installing a protective storage unit that includes two Robotic External Leak Locator (RELL) units the Canadian Space Agency’s Dextre robot can use to detect leaks of ammonia, which is used to operate the station’s cooling system.

Behnken and Cassidy then removed two lifting fixtures at the base of station solar arrays on the near port truss, or backbone, of the station. The “H-fixtures” were used for ground processing of the solar arrays prior to their launch.

They then completed tasks to prepare the outside of the Tranquility module for the arrival later this year of the Nanoracks commercial airlock on a SpaceX cargo delivery mission. After its installation, the airlock will enable be used to deploy commercial and government-sponsored experiments into space. They also routed ethernet cables and removed a lens filter cover from an external camera.

For more information on today’s spacewalk and full coverage of all other station activities, visit the agency’s Space Station blog.

Astronauts Behnken and Cassidy Start Spacewalk

NASA astronaut Bob Behnken’s spacesuit gloves and camera are reflected in his helmet’s visor in this “space-selfie” taken during a spacewalk on June 26, 2020.
NASA astronaut Bob Behnken’s spacesuit gloves and camera are reflected in his helmet’s visor in this “space-selfie” taken during a spacewalk on June 26, 2020.

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Chris Cassidy have begun the final planned spacewalk during their mission at the International Space Station.

The spacewalkers switched their spacesuits to battery power at 7:12 a.m. EDT to begin the spacewalk, which is expected to last between six and seven hours.

The pair will be working on several tasks to upgrade systems and prepare for future station upgrades. Behnken and Cassidy will remove handling aids from two locations at the base of station solar arrays, prepare the outside of the Tranquility module for the arrival later this year of the Nanoracks commercial airlock, route ethernet cables, and remove a lens filter cover from an external camera.

For full coverage of today’s spacewalk and all other station activities, visit the agency’s Space Station blog.

NASA Astronauts Conclude Today’s Spacewalk

NASA astronaut pictured tethered on the space station's truss structure during a spacewalk to swap batteries and route cables.
NASA astronaut pictured tethered on the space station’s truss structure during a spacewalk to swap batteries and route cables.

NASA astronauts Chris Cassidy and Robert Behnken concluded their spacewalk at 1:10 p.m. EDT, after six hours. The two NASA astronauts completed all the work to replace batteries that provide power for the International Space Station’s solar arrays on the starboard truss of the complex. The new batteries provide an improved and more efficient power capacity for operations.

The spacewalkers removed six aging nickel-hydrogen batteries for the second of two power channels for the starboard 6 (S6) truss, installed three new lithium-ion batteries, and installed the three associated adapter plates that are used to complete the power circuit to the new batteries. Mission control reports that all three new batteries are working.

Behnken and Cassidy are scheduled to conduct one more spacewalk Tuesday, July 21, during which they will remove two lifting fixtures used for ground processing of the station’s solar arrays prior to their launch. They’ll also begin preparing the Tranquility module for the installation of a commercial airlock provided by NanoRacks and scheduled to arrive on a SpaceX cargo flight later this year. The airlock will be used to deploy commercial and government-sponsored experiments into space.

To read a full recap of today’s spacewalk, visit the agency’s Space Station blog.

Falcon 9 Rocket Arrives for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 Mission

The SpaceX Falcon 9 first stage booster that will launch NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 mission arrived in Florida on Tuesday, July 14, 2020. The rocket was shipped from the SpaceX facility in McGregor, Texas, and will now undergo prelaunch processing in the company’s facility on nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Photo credit: SpaceX

The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will launch NASA’s SpaceX Crew-1 mission for the agency’s Commercial Crew Program has arrived in Florida. NASA and SpaceX are preparing for the company’s first operational flight of the Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket after certification, carrying NASA astronauts Victor Glover, Michael Hopkins, Shannon Walker and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Soichi Noguchi to the International Space Station for a full duration mission.

The mission will be the second time SpaceX’s Crew Dragon will ferry astronauts to the space station, but the first in a series of regular, rotational missions. The company successfully flew NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley to the space station in May on another Crew Dragon – Endeavour – on a test flight known as Demo-2. Behnken and Hurley will continue to perform science, maintenance and spacewalks onboard station until their return to Earth.

The SpaceX Crew Dragon for Crew-1 will launch atop the Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket was shipped from the SpaceX facility in McGregor, Texas, and will now undergo prelaunch processing in the company’s facility on nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Astronauts Have Begun Spacewalk Live on NASA TV

NASA astronaut and Expedition 63 Flight Engineer Bob Behnken works during a spacewalk to swap an aging nickel-hydrogen battery for a new lithium-ion battery on the International Space Station’s Starboard-6 truss structure.

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Chris Cassidy have begun the first of two final spacewalks to finish a 3.5-year effort to upgrade the International Space Station’s power system. They will replace batteries on one of two power channels on the station’s far starboard truss (S6 Truss).

The spacewalkers switched their spacesuits to battery power at 7:10 a.m. EDT to begin the spacewalk, which is expected to last between six and seven hours. Watch the spacewalk live on NASA TV and on the agency’s website.

Behnken and crewmate Douglas Hurley arrived at the space station in May as part of the Demo-2 mission under the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The mission is designed to test SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket – including all launch, in-orbit, docking and landing operations – ahead of NASA certifying SpaceX’s crew transportation system for regular, crewed flights to the orbiting laboratory.

For full coverage of today’s spacewalk and all other station activities, visit the agency’s Space Station blog.

Astronauts Spacewalking Live Now on NASA TV

NASA astronauts (from top) Chris Cassidy and Bob Behnken work on U.S. spacesuits inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock.
NASA astronauts (from top) Chris Cassidy and Bob Behnken work on U.S. spacesuits inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock.

NASA astronauts Chris Cassidy and Robert Behnken have begun the second of two scheduled spacewalks to replace batteries on one of two power channels on the far starboard truss (S6 Truss) of the International Space Station.

The spacewalkers switched their spacesuits to battery power at 7:13 a.m. EDT to begin the spacewalk, which may last as long as seven hours. Watch the spacewalk on NASA TV and on the agency’s website.

Behnken and NASA astronaut Doug Hurley arrived at the space station in May aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program’s Demo-2 mission. The end-to-end test flight is designed to validate the SpaceX crew transportation system, including launch, in-orbit, docking and landing operations, paving the way for its certification for regular crew flights to the station.

For full coverage of today’s spacewalk and other station activities, visit the agency’s Space Station blog.

Cassidy and Behnken Conclude Spacewalk to Replace Batteries

NASA Astronauts Chris Cassidy and Bob Behnken during spacewalk to replace batteries to upgrade the power supply capability.

NASA astronauts Chris Cassidy and Robert Behnken concluded their spacewalk at 1:39 p.m. EDT, after six hours and seven minutes. The two NASA astronauts completed all the work planned for this first of four spacewalks to replace batteries that provide power for the station’s solar arrays on the starboard truss of the complex as well as initial tasks originally planned for the second scheduled spacewalk next Wednesday. The new batteries provide an improved and more efficient power capacity for operations.

The spacewalkers removed five of six aging nickel-hydrogen batteries for one of two power channels for the starboard 6 (S6) truss, installed two of three new lithium-ion batteries, and installed two of three associated adapter plates that are used to complete the power circuit to the new batteries. Mission control reports that the two new batteries are working.

Cassidy and Behnken are scheduled to complete the upgrade to this initial power channel in a second spacewalk on July 1, during which they will install one more lithium-ion battery and one more adapter plate and remove the sixth nickel-hydrogen battery that will no longer be used.

Behnken arrived at the space station in May in SpaceX’s Crew Dragon with NASA astronaut Doug Hurley as part of the Commercial Crew Program’s Demo-2 mission, which returned astronaut launches into orbit from U.S. soil for the first time since the space shuttle’s retirement in 2011.

For more details, visit the space station blog.

International Space Station welcomes first SpaceX Crew Dragon with NASA Astronauts

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken (left) and Doug Hurley will launch to the International Space Station on the Demo-2 mission – the crew flight test of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.
NASA astronauts Robert Behnken (left) and Doug Hurley arrived safely at the International Space Station on Sunday, May 31. Image credit: SpaceX/Ashish Sharma

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley arrived at the International Space Station on Sunday aboard the first commercially built and operated American spacecraft to carry humans to orbit, opening a new era in human spaceflight.

The pair of astronauts docked to the space station’s Harmony module at 10:16 a.m. EDT Sunday.

Behnken and Hurley, the first astronauts to fly to SpaceX’s Crew Dragon to the station, were welcomed as crew members of Expedition 63 by fellow NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and two Russian cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner.

The docking followed the first successful launch of Crew Dragon with astronauts on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 3:22 p.m. EDT Saturday from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space in Florida, the same launch pad used for the Apollo 11 Moon landing mission.

After reaching orbit, Behnken and Hurley named their Crew Dragon spacecraft “Endeavour” as a tribute to the first space shuttle each astronaut had flown aboard. Endeavour also flew the penultimate mission of the Space Shuttle Program, launching in May 2011 from the same pad.

This flight, known as NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2, is an end-to-end test to validate the SpaceX crew transportation system, including launch, in-orbit, docking and landing operations. This is SpaceX’s second spaceflight test of its Crew Dragon and its first test with astronauts aboard, and will pave the way for its certification for regular crew flights to the station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

Watch NASA TV now for NASA Administrator news briefing

Now that NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley have safely arrived aboard the International Space Station following their launch on NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 mission May 30, NASA Television and the agency’s website are airing a news conference.

Participants are:

  • NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine
  • Mark Geyer, director, NASA’s Johnson Space Center
  • Kenneth Todd, deputy manager, International Space Station Program
  • Steve Stich, deputy manager, NASA Commercial Crew Program
  • NASA Astronaut Kjell Lindgren

Follow along with mission activities and get more information at: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/. Learn more about commercial crew and space station activities by following @Commercial_Crew, @space_station, and @ISS_Research on Twitter as well as the Commercial Crew Facebook, ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2: Crew Dragon Hatch Open

NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 crew members Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley are greeted by Expedition 63 crew members Chris Cassidy, Ivan Vagner and Anatoly Ivanishin, May 31, 2020. Image credit: NASA TV

NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour have arrived at the International Space Station to join Expedition 63 Commander and NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and cosmonauts Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner of the Russian space agency Roscosmos.

NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 crew members are seen inside the Crew Dragon moments after opening the spacecraft’s hatch. Image credit: NASA TV

The crew members first opened the hatch between the space station and Dragon Endeavour at 1:02 p.m. EDT, allowing Hurley and Behnken to enter their new home in space as members of Expedition 63. The five crew members will hold a welcome ceremony next, after which the continuous coverage of the mission that began prior to launch will conclude.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine will hold a news conference at 3:15 p.m. EDT from NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston to discuss the successful docking of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. Johnson Center Director Mark Geyer, International Space Station Program Deputy Manager Kenneth Todd, NASA Commercial Crew Program Deputy Manager Steve Stich, and NASA Astronaut Kjell Lindgren also will participate in the live media briefing broadcast on NASA Television and the agency’s website.

It is the second arrival and autonomous docking to the International Space Station for a Crew Dragon spacecraft and the first time any commercially built spacecraft has delivered astronauts to the orbiting laboratory.

Known as NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2, the mission is an end-to-end test flight to validate the SpaceX crew transportation system, including launch, in-orbit, docking and landing operations and pave the way for its certification for regular crew flights to the station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

For operational missions, Crew Dragon will be able to launch as many as four crew members and carry more than 220 pounds of cargo, enabling the expansion of the inhabitants of the space station, increasing the time dedicated to research in the unique microgravity environment, and returning more science back to Earth.

Follow along with mission activities and get more information at: https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation.