NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Arrives at Launch Pad

Image shows NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 crewmembers arrive at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 crewmembers arrive at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. Photo credit: NASA

Members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 are about two hours away from launch! 

NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, arrived at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, where a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft will launch them to the International Space Station. 

Space Launch Complex-40 carries decades of history dating back to the 1960s when Titan rockets launched from the pad for the United States Air Force. SpaceX leased the launch site in 2007 for the company’s Falcon 9 rockets, but this is the first time a human spaceflight mission will launch from the pad. In 2023, teams at SpaceX built a tower, a crew access arm, and an emergency escape system for future crewed missions. The emergency system involves chutes instead of egress baskets like those used at Launch Complex 39A and B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. 

 Hague and Gorbunov will soon board an elevator to the crew access arm, where they will walk across to the White Room for last-minute preparations before entering the spacecraft. 

 Liftoff remains scheduled for 1:17 p.m. EDT.  

Meet NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9

Image shows NASA SpaceX Crew-9 astronaut Nick Hague
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Nick Hague is pictured smiling in his flight suit during training at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Credit: SpaceX

Nick Hague became a NASA astronaut in 2013. NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 launch today will be Hague’s third launch and second mission to the International Space Station. He has logged 203 days in space during Expeditions 59 and 60. 

An active-duty colonel in the U.S. Space Force, Hague completed a developmental rotation with the Defense Department and served as the Space Force’s director of test and evaluation from 2020 to 2022. In August 2022, Hague resumed duties at NASA, working on the Boeing Starliner Program until the Crew-9 assignment. Follow @astrohague on X and Instagram. 

This will be Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov’s first trip to space and the station. Born in Zheleznogorsk, Kursk region, Russia, he studied engineering with qualifications in spacecraft and upper stages from the Moscow Aviation Institute. Gorbunov graduated from the military department with a specialty in operating and repairing aircraft, helicopters, and aircraft engines. Before his selection as a cosmonaut in 2018, he worked as an engineer for Rocket Space Corp. Energia and supported cargo spacecraft launches from the Baikonur Cosmodrome.  

Hague and Gorbunov soon will board a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to launch to the International Space Station from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. They will spend about five months at the orbiting laboratory conducting experiments, research demonstrations, and spacewalks to perform maintenance on the space station.  

Learn more about International Space Station research and operations at:  

https://www.nasa.gov/station 

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Exits Crew Quarters, Heads to Launch Site

Image shows NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 crew members walk out of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 crew members walk out of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of launch on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. NASA astronaut Nick Hague (right) and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket. Launch is targeted for 1:17 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Crew-9 is the ninth crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the space station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Photo credit: NASA

The crew is on their way to Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex-40 to launch on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. This is the first time a human spaceflight mission will launch from the pad. 

NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, spent the last couple of hours eating and suiting up inside crew quarters at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. 

The Crew-9 crewmembers waved to family and friends before entering customized Tesla Model X vehicles, with a security escort, for a roughly 20-minute journey to the launch pad. 

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and a Dragon spacecraft will launch Crew-9 to the space station for about a five-month mission. Hague and Gorbunov will join Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who are already aboard the space station, and all will return to Earth as a crew of four in February 2025. 

NASA’s live coverage of the Crew-9 mission continues on NASA+ and the agency’s website. 

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Launch Day Milestones

Image of SpaceX Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket ahead of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station.
SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft sits atop a Falcon 9 rocket on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, at Space Launch Complex-40 ahead of launch to the International Space Station. Photo credit: NASA

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 launch operations are underway to send a NASA astronaut and Roscosmos cosmonaut to the International Space Station. Crew-9 is the ninth crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the space station under the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. 

Time                Event  (All times subject to change)
9:17 a.m.      Suit donning and checkouts
9:57 a.m.     Crew walkout from Neil A. Armstrong Operations & Checkout Building
10:02 a.m.   Crew transportation to Launch Complex-40
10:20 a.m.   Crew arrives at pad and ascends tower
10:42 a.m.   Crew ingress
10:48 a.m.   Seat rotation
10:49 a.m.   Suit leak checks
10:58 a.m.   Communication check
11:22 a.m.    Hatch close
12:42 p.m.  SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for propellant load
12:35 p.m.   Crew access arm retracts
12:39 p.m.   Dragon’s launch escape system is armed
12:42 p.m.   RP-1 (rocket grade kerosene) loading begins
12:42 p.m.  1st stage LOX (liquid oxygen) loading begins
1:01 p.m.     2nd stage LOX loading begins
1:10 p.m.     Falcon 9 begins engine chill prior to launch
1:15 p.m.     Dragon transitions to internal power
1:16 p.m.     Command flight computer to begin final prelaunch checks
1:16 p.m.     Propellant tank pressurization to flight pressure begins
1:16 p.m.     SpaceX Launch Director verifies go for launch
1:17 p.m.     Falcon 9 liftoff
1:18 p.m.    Max Q (moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket)
1:19 p.m.    1st stage main engine cutoff (MECO)
1:19 p.m.    1st and 2nd stages separate
1:19 p.m.    2nd stage engine starts
1:20 p.m.    Boostback Burn Starts
1:21 p.m.     Boostback Burn Ends
1:23 p.m.    1st stage entry burn starts
1:24 p.m.    1st stage entry burn ends
1:24 p.m.    1st stage landing burn starts
1:25 p.m.    1st stage landing
1:26 p.m.    2nd stage engine cutoff (SECO-1)
1:29 p.m.    Dragon separates from 2nd stage
1:30 p.m.    Dragon nosecone open sequence begins 

NASA’s live coverage of the Crew-9 mission 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. 

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Members Suit Up

Image shows NASA Crew-9 crewmembers suiting up for their launch to the International Space Station on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 crew members are seated inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of launch to the International Space Station on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. NASA astronaut Nick Hague (left) and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are scheduled to lift off aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket at 1:17 p.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. Crew-9 is the ninth crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the space station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Photo credit: NASA

NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are in the process of suit-up operations in the Astronaut Crew Quarters inside NASA Kennedy Space Center’s Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building in Florida. 

The crew are sitting in seats configured like the ones they will occupy inside the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft during launch. Technicians are pressurizing the suits and checking for any leaks. Each 3D-printed helmet includes a communications system and valves to regulate the suit’s pressure systems. A port on the suit’s thigh connects to life support systems, including air and power. 

Image shows NASA's Crew-9 crewmembers play ritual card game on launch day, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024.
NASA’s Crew-9 crewmembers play ritual card game on launch day, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2024. Photo credit: NASA

Once suited, Hague and Gorbunov soon will play the ritual card game that occurs before any human spaceflight mission launching from the Florida spaceport. The point of the game is that the commander must use up all his or her bad luck before the launch, so the crew can only leave for the launch pad once the commander loses.  

Launch is targeted for 1:17 p.m. EDT at Space Launch Complex-40 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This is the first time a human spaceflight mission will launch from the pad. 

NASA’s live coverage of the Crew-9 mission continues on NASA+ and the agency’s website. 

NASA+ Crew-9 Launch Coverage Begins

Image of countdown clock on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, ahead of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Launch to the International Space Station
Image of countdown clock on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, ahead of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Launch to the International Space Station. Photo credit: NASA

NASA’s live coverage is underway on NASA+ and the agency’s website for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. 

At 1:17 p.m. EDT, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, will begin their journey to the space station aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.  

Launch weather officers with Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s 45th Weather Squadron predict a 55% of favorable weather conditions for the launch. The cumulus cloud rule, flight through precipitation, and surface electric fields rule are the primary weather concerns.

Right now, the Crew-9 crewmembers are inside the Astronaut Crew Quarters of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, undergoing medical checks and receiving a weather briefing before suiting up.  

Hague and Gorbunov will join NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who arrived at the space station in June, to complete their crew contingent. The crew will spend about five months at the orbiting laboratory conducting experiments, research demonstrations, and spacewalks to perform maintenance on the space station before returning in February 2025.  

Stay with us throughout the day as we countdown toward launch. Updates will be posted on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, or commercial crew on Facebook. 

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Mission on Track for Saturday Launch

Image of NASA and mission partners held a prelaunch news conference for the NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission.
A prelaunch news briefing takes place inside the John Holliman Auditorium of the News Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, ahead of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission to the International Space Station. Photo credit: NASA

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 two-man crew is ready for their mission to the International Space Station.

NASA and mission partners held a prelaunch news conference on Sept. 27 and the 1:17 p.m. EDT Saturday, Sept. 28, liftoff remains on schedule from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Launch weather officers with Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s 45th Weather Squadron predict a 55% of favorable weather conditions for the launch. The cumulus cloud rule, flight through precipitation, and surface electric fields rule are the primary weather concerns.

SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket are back on the pad and cargo loading will soon begin. Both rolled back to the hangar on Wednesday to protect from Hurricane Helene.

Crew-9 will be the first human spaceflight mission to launch from the pad, carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, to the orbiting laboratory for a five-month science mission.

“We moved to a different pad, Space Launch Complex-40, and it’s great to have that flexibility to be able to use Launch Pad 39A or Space Launch Complex-40 for launches,” said Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate. “I’m so proud of the commercial crew team, the International Space Station team, and our partners at SpaceX and the work they’ve done to prepare for launch.”

Watch a replay of the prelaunch news conference.

NASA’s broadcast coverage of the Crew-9 launch begins at 9:10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28. Watch live on NASA+ and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

NASA, SpaceX to Discuss Crew-9 Mission

Image shows SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket ahead of NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company’s Dragon spacecraft on top is seen Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, on the launch pad at Space Launch Complex-40 as preparations continue for the Crew-9 mission at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.  Photo credit: NASA/Keegan Barber

In less than 24 hours, Crew-9 crew members NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, will launch to the International Space Station.

Leading up to liftoff, NASA and SpaceX plan to host a prelaunch news conference from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, Sept. 27, at 5 p.m. EDT with the following participants:

  • NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free
  • Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate
  • Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
  • Dina Contella, deputy manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
  • Jennifer Buchli, chief scientist, NASA’s International Space Station Program
  • William Gerstenmaier, vice president, Build & Flight Reliability, SpaceX
  • Brian Cizek, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

Watch the event live on NASA+ and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Launch of the Crew-9 mission is targeted for 1:17 p.m. EDT on Saturday, Sept. 28, aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This is the first time a human spaceflight mission will launch from the pad.

More details about the launch will be posted on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, or commercial crew on Facebook.

NASA Hosts Crew-9 Space Station 101 Social Panel

Image shows NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 logo with the iconic Vehicle Assembly Building in the background at NASA's Kennedy Space Center
A graphic for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission is displayed on the historic countdown clock at the NASA News Center at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024. Photo credit: NASA/Cory S Huston

NASA will host an International Space Station 101 panel livestream at 1:15 p.m. Friday, Sept 27. Agency experts will provide an overview about the space station, operations, science, living and working in space, and take questions from reporters and social media.

Participants in the livestream panel include:

  • NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free
  • Robyn Gatens, director, NASA’s International Space Station Program, and acting director, NASA’s Commercial Spaceflight Division
  • Jennifer Buchli, chief scientist, NASA’s International Space Station Program
  • John Posey, Dragon lead engineer, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program

NASA will stream the briefing beginning at 1:15 p.m. on NASA+ and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Following the panel discussion, leaders from NASA and SpaceX will host a prelaunch news conference at 5 p.m. to discuss final steps leading up to the 1:17 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28 launch from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

NASA astronaut Nick Hague, commander, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, mission specialist, make up the two-man team who will launch aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and the company’s Falcon 9 rocket to the orbiting laboratory.

Launch weather officers with Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s 45th Weather Squadron predict a 55% of favorable weather conditions for the launch. Cumulus cloud rule, flight through precipitation, surface electric fields rule are the primary weather concerns.

More details about the launch will be posted on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, or commercial crew on Facebook.

NASA, SpaceX Complete Launch Rehearsal, Falcon 9 Static Fire

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 crew members participate in a countdown dress rehearsal at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, to prepare for the upcoming Crew-9 launch. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

To prepare for NASA’s Crew-9 mission, SpaceX fired the nine Merlin first-stage engines of the company’s Falcon 9 rocket during a routine static fire test on Tuesday, Sept. 24, at Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

The successful static fire test allows NASA and SpaceX to move forward with launch operations to send NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov to the International Space Station.

Teams plan to roll the Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket back to the SpaceX hangar Wednesday, Sept. 25, to prepare for any weather impacts along the Space Coast due to Hurricane Helene, which is expected to make landfall near the Florida panhandle on Thursday, Sept. 26.

NASA and SpaceX also participated Tuesday in a countdown dry dress rehearsal in preparation for the upcoming launch. Rehearsal included Hague and Gorbunov getting into their spacesuits inside the crew quarters at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew also took an elevator to the ground floor, exited the building’s double doors, and got into vehicles that took them to the launch pad. Once at Space Launch Complex-40, the duo then climbed into the Dragon spacecraft and rehearsed launch day operations.

Launch is targeted for no earlier than 1:17 p.m. EDT Saturday, Sept. 28, from Space Launch Complex-40.

More details about the launch will be posted on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, or commercial crew on Facebook.