NASA and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than 3:05 a.m. EDT Sunday, Oct. 13, for the undocking of the Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station due to weather conditions and potential impacts from Hurricane Milton across the Florida peninsula. Mission managers continue to monitor conditions, with the next weather briefing planned for 11 a.m. Friday, Oct. 11.
Crew-8 Return No Earlier Than Oct. 10
NASA and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than 3:05 a.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 10, for the undocking of the Crew-8 mission from the International Space Station due to weather conditions off the coast of Florida. Mission managers continue to monitor conditions, with the next weather briefing planned for 11 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8.
NASA Astronauts Wilmore, Williams Complete Move to Crew-9 Spacecraft
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are fully integrated into the newly arrived Crew-9 spacecraft docked to the International Space Station. The duo tried on their SpaceX Intravehicular Activity spacesuits and completed pressurized suit leak checks on Tuesday. They also tested the suits’ audio configurations and conducted seat fit checks inside the Dragon spacecraft, completing the work required to return on the spacecraft that delivered NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov to the station on Sept. 29.
Williams, space station commander, and Wilmore, flight engineer, will remain on the space station as Expedition 72 crew members completing a science mission aboard the space station and return to Earth in February 2025 with Hague and Gorbunov as part of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission. With the checks completed, the Crew-9 Dragon now is the normal and emergency return spacecraft for the four-person crew.
The temporary seats built up inside the Crew-8 Dragon spacecraft, that had been serving as an emergency return spacecraft for Williams and Wilmore until Crew-9 arrived, will be dismantled by the crew prior to the spacecraft’s departure from the space station. The Crew-8 spacecraft and its crew of NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, are scheduled to return to Earth in about a week, depending on weather conditions in the splashdown zones off the coast of Florida.
Expedition 72 Welcomes Crew-9 Duo Aboard Station
NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov entered the International Space Station after opening the hatch between the space station and the pressurized mating adapter at 7:04 p.m. EDT before opening the hatch to Dragon.
Hague and Gorbunov were welcomed by the space station’s Expedition 72 crew, including NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, Don Petitt, Butch Wilmore, and Suni Williams, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin, and Ivan Vagner.
NASA’s live coverage continues through crew welcome remarks aboard the station on NASA+, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
Get weekly updates from NASA Johnson Space Center at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/
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SpaceX Dragon with Crew-9 Aboard Docks to Station
NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov arrived at the International Space Station Sunday, as the SpaceX Dragon Freedom docked to the orbiting complex at 5:30 p.m. EDT while the station was 260 statute miles over Botswana.
Following Dragon’s link up to the Harmony module, the astronauts aboard the Dragon and the space station will begin conducting standard leak checks and pressurization between the spacecraft in preparation for hatch opening scheduled for approximately 7:15 p.m.
Hague and Gorbunov will join the space station’s Expedition 72 crew of NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, Don Petitt, Butch Wilmore, and Suni Williams, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexander Grebenkin, Alexey Ovchinin, and Ivan Vagner. For a short time, the number of crew aboard the space station will increase to 11 people until Crew-8 members Dominick, Barratt, Epps, and Grebenkin return to Earth in early October.
NASA’s live coverage continues on NASA+, YouTube, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.
Get weekly updates from NASA Johnson Space Center at: https://roundupreads.jsc.nasa.gov/
Get the latest from NASA delivered every week. Subscribe here: www.nasa.gov/subscribe
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 News Conference at 3 p.m. EDT
The SpaceX spacecraft carrying Crew-9 members NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, to the International Space Station has safely reached orbit, and the nosecone has opened.
A postlaunch news conference will be held at 3 p.m. EDT at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida with the following participants:
- NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy
- Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate
- Dana Hutcherson, deputy program manager, Commercial Crew Program, NASA Kennedy
- Dina Contella, deputy manager, International Space Station Program, NASA Johnson
- Sarah Walker, director, Dragon Mission Management, SpaceX
NASA will air the postlaunch news conference on NASA+ and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Spacecraft Flying Solo
At 1:29 EDT, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft separated from the Falcon 9 rocket second stage and now is flying on its own.
NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, are on a 28.5-hour journey to the International Space Station. The spacecraft now is in orbit and will autonomously dock to the Harmony module’s forward port. Soon, the crew will open their visors and get out of their suits during the ride.
Once Hague and Gorbunov reach the orbiting laboratory, they will be greeted by nine members of the Expedition 72 crew. There will be a brief overlap period before NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 members, NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Mike Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin return to Earth. The four-person crew has been at the orbiting laboratory since March 5, when they docked to the orbital outpost aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft.
Check back for updates on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, or commercial crew on Facebook.
Falcon 9 First Stage Sticks Landing
The first stage of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has completed its descent and landed at the company’s Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Next, the Dragon spacecraft will separate from the rocket’s second stage to continue its journey to the International Space Station.
Falcon 9 Max Q, Main Engine Cutoff, Stage Separation
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket has reached Max-Q, the moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket. Following this, first stage main engine cutoff occurred, and the first and second stages have separated from each other.
The rocket’s first stage booster is scheduled to land at SpaceX’s Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
Next, the Falcon 9’s second-stage engine will ignite to carry Crew-9 and the Dragon spacecraft closer to orbit.
Liftoff! NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Heads to Space Station
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission lifted off at 1:17 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This marks the first time a human spaceflight mission launched from the pad.
NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are already experiencing 2 g while SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket go through a rapid succession of events.
It is expected to take 28.5 hours for the spacecraft to autonomously dock to the space station at 5:30 p.m. EDT Sunday, Sept. 29, while traveling 17,000 mph orbiting the Earth.
Coming up next, the nine Merlin engines on Falcon 9’s first stage will burn through one million pounds of propellant during the next three minutes.
NASA’s live coverage continues on NASA+ and the agency’s website. Also, check back for updates on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, or commercial crew on Facebook.