Month: July 2019

Launch preparations for SpaceX’s CRS-18 mission are well underway as SpaceX proceeds to count down to a 6:24 p.m. EDT liftoff, just fifteen minutes away. Fueling of the Falcon 9 rocket is underway.

Weather continues to be a cause for concern, as meteorologists with the U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing are now predicting a 10% chance of favorable weather conditions for liftoff. NASA TV and the agency’s website continue to provide live countdown coverage.

CRS-18 will deliver about 5,000 pounds of supplies and critical materials that will directly support dozens of science and research investigations that will take place during Expedition 60 and beyond.

Learn more about station activities by following @space_station and @ISS_Research on Twitter as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

Hello and welcome from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida! A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands ready for liftoff at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 for the company’s CRS-18 mission to the International Space Station. Launch is scheduled for 6:24 p.m. EDT tonight, with an instantaneous launch window. Follow along on NASA Television for the live broadcast.

Launch controllers here at Kennedy will be working in conjunction with teams at SpaceX’s mission control center in Hawthorne, California, for tonight’s launch. The Dragon spacecraft – delivering critical supplies, equipment and material for multiple science and research investigations – will arrive at the space station two days after launch, July 26.

When it arrives, NASA astronaut Nick Hague will robotically capture Dragon, with NASA astronaut Christina Koch serving as his backup. The agency’s Andrew Morgan, also at the space station, will monitor telemetry during Dragon’s approach. After the spacecraft capture, mission control in Houston will send ground commands for the station’s arm to rotate and install it on the bottom of the orbiting laboratory’s Harmony module.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, topped with the company’s cargo Dragon spacecraft, stands ready for launch at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida for the company’s CRS-18 mission to the International Space Station. However, one thing to keep an eye on for this evening’s launch is the weather.

“I notice plenty of humidity out there, but another thing we have to deal with is the direction of the steering flow, or where the winds in the atmosphere are going to steer those afternoon showers and thunderstorms,” said Will Ulrich, launch weather officer for the U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing, in this morning’s prelaunch news conference. “Today, we have winds that will concentrate the majority of today’s showers and thunderstorms near the spaceport.”

The launch forecast currently remains 30% “go” with the primary weather concern being cumulus clouds and their associated anvil clouds, as well as lightning. “I wish I had some better news, but hopefully we can find a gap in today’s showers and thunderstorms,” said Ulrich.

Live launch coverage will begin at 6 p.m. EDT on NASA TV and the agency’s website, as well as here on the blog. Previously flown on CRS-6 and CRS-13, this evening’s launch will be the first time SpaceX is flying Dragon for a third time.

CRS-18 will deliver about 5,000 pounds of science investigations, supplies and equipment to the orbiting laboratory. Learn more about the mission at: https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/atoms/files/spacex_crs-18_mision_overview_high_res.pdf

Tune in to NASA TV and the agency’s website at 10 a.m. EDT to watch the prelaunch news conference – taking place at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida – and hear from officials with the International Space Station Program Science Office, SpaceX and the U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing. Join us here on the blog tonight and on NASA TV for updates and live launch coverage beginning at 6 p.m. EDT.

Launch of SpaceX’s 18th Commercial Resupply Services mission to the station is scheduled for today, July 24, at 6:24 p.m. The company’s Falcon 9 rocket will lift off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, carrying the Dragon spacecraft, which will deliver supplies, equipment and material that will directly support multiple science and research investigations taking place during Expedition 60 and beyond.

Meteorologists with the U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing predict a 30% chance of favorable weather for SpaceX’s 18th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS-18) mission to the International Space Station. Primary weather concerns are cumulus clouds and their associated anvil clouds, as well as lightning.

The Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to lift off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 6:24 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, July 24. The company’s Dragon spacecraft will deliver a number of science investigations, supplies and equipment to the station, including the International Docking Adapter-3 – a new docking adapter that will enable future spacecraft built under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program to autonomously attach to station.

Launch day will begin with a prelaunch news conference at 10 a.m. with representatives from the International Space Station Program Science Office, SpaceX and the U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing. Watch live on NASA TV or the agency’s website.