Prelaunch Briefings and Launch Day Details

IAD_Install_5[6]SpaceX is scheduled to launch its ninth Commercial Resupply Services mission for NASA to the International Space Station Monday, July 18. Our continuous countdown coverage here on the Launch Blog and NASA Television coverage of the launch will begin at 11:30 p.m. EDT, Sunday, July 17.

The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is targeting liftoff on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket at 12:44 a.m. from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, carrying science research, crew supplies and hardware to the orbiting laboratory in support of the Expedition 48 and 49 crew members. You can read more details about the International Docking Adapter, pictured, that will be carried into orbit during the mission here.

As part of prelaunch activities, NASA TV will air a prelaunch briefing conducted by mission managers on Saturday, July 16, at 2 p.m. The briefing also will stream live on the agency’s website at www.nasa.gov/ntv.

About 10 minutes after launch, Dragon will reach its preliminary orbit, deploy its solar arrays and begin a carefully choreographed series of thruster firings to reach the space station. SpaceX also is planning to attempt to land its Falcon 9 first stage on land.

After a two-day trip, NASA astronaut Jeff Williams will use the station’s 57.7-foot robotic arm to reach out and capture the Dragon spacecraft as he operates from the station’s cupola. NASA astronaut Kate Rubins will serve as the backup. Ground commands will be sent from Houston for the station’s arm to install Dragon on the Earth-facing side of the station’s Harmony module for its stay at the space station. By the next day, the crew will pressurize the vestibule between the station and Dragon, and then open the hatch that leads to the forward bulkhead of Dragon.

Live coverage of the rendezvous and capture July 20 will begin at 5:30 a.m. on NASA TV, with installation set to begin at 9:45 a.m.

During the next five weeks, crew members will unload the spacecraft and reload it with cargo to return to Earth. About five-and-a-half hours after it departs the station Aug. 29, it will splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California.

If the launch does not occur Monday, July 18, the next launch opportunity is midnight Wednesday, July 20, with NASA TV coverage starting at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, July 19. For more details about the briefings ahead of launch, go to http://go.nasa.gov/29SQAVQ

New Photos of IDA-2 Loading into Dragon

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SpaceX provided these photos of engineers and technicians loading the International Docking Adapter into the trunk of the Dragon spacecraft for launch to the International Space Station. Known as IDA-2, the docking ring is tailored to the international docking standard for future human-rated spacecraft and is outfitted with sensors and instruments designed to accommodate new spacecraft carrying astronauts to the orbiting laboratory. There is a lot more to the IDA story and you can read about it here: http://go.nasa.gov/2a9xpTN 
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SpaceX CRS-9 Carrying Crucial Port to Station

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The CRS-9 mission slated to launch Monday morning at 12:45 EDT will carry an International Docking Adapter that will provide a vital link between the International Space Station and the new spacecraft in development with NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Big enough for astronauts to float through, the segment is outfitted with sensors and devices that are designed to allow arriving spacecraft to dock automatically without astronauts steering them in themselves.  Spacewalkers will position the docking ring on the end of the station where it will be in place for the first flight tests by the new generation of human-rated spacecraft. Read more details: http://go.nasa.gov/2a9xpTN

 

Dragon Splashes Down Safely to Complete CRS-8

Graphic of SpaceX CRS-8 mission title over Earth's horizonSpaceX’s Dragon cargo craft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean at 2:51 p.m. EDT, about 261 miles southwest of Long Beach, California, marking the end of the company’s eighth contracted cargo resupply mission to the International Space Station.

A boat will take the Dragon spacecraft to a port near Los Angeles, where some cargo will be removed and returned to NASA within 48 hours. Dragon will be prepared for a return journey to SpaceX’s test facility in McGregor, Texas, for processing. Dragon is currently the only space station resupply spacecraft able to return a significant amount of cargo to Earth at this time.

Dragon is returning more than 3,700 pounds of NASA cargo and science samples from a variety of technological and biological studies about the International Space Station. The Microchannel Diffusion study, which investigated fluids at the nanoscale, or atomic level, holds promise for a wide range of technologies. Nanofluidic sensors could measure the makeup of space station air, or be used to deliver drugs to specific places in the body, for example. This type of research is possible only on the space station, where Earth’s gravity is not strong enough to interact with sample molecules, so they behave more like they would at the nanoscale. Knowledge gleaned from the investigation may have implications for drug delivery, particle filtration and future technological applications for space exploration.

 

 

 

Dragon Released From Station

SpaceX CRS-8 mission patchThe SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft was released from the International Space Station’s robotic arm at 9:19 a.m. EDT. The capsule will begin a series of departure burns and maneuvers to move beyond the 656-foot “keep out sphere” around the station and begin its return trip to Earth. The capsule is currently scheduled to splashdown in the Pacific Ocean at 2:55 p.m. about 261 miles southwest of Long Beach, California.

The spacecraft will return the final batch of human research samples from former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly’s historic one-year mission. These samples will be analyzed for studies such as Biochemical Profile, Cardio Ox, Fluid Shifts, Microbiome, Salivary Markers and the Twins Study. Additional samples taken on the ground as Kelly continues to support these studies will provide insights relevant for the Journey to Mars as NASA learns more about how the human body adjusts to weightlessness, isolation, radiation and the stress of long-duration spaceflight.

Dragon Departure Coverage at 9 A.M.

26298228022_d252b460fa_oNASA Television will provide live coverage of the departure of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft from the International Space Station beginning at 9 a.m. EDT. Dragon, seen above when it was captured by the station’s robotic arm on April 10, was detached from the Earth-facing side of the station’s Harmony module earlier this morning. Robotics controllers will maneuver Dragon into place and Expedition 47 robotic arm operator Tim Peake of the European Space Agency will execute the command for its 9:18 a.m. release.

Dragon arrived at the space station April 10 after launching April 8 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida carrying almost 7,000 pounds of supplies and cargo on the company’s eighth commercial resupply mission to the station.

Release of the spacecraft by the station’s robotic arm will begin the Dragon’s return to Earth carrying more than 3,700 pounds of NASA cargo and science samples from human research, biology and biotechnology studies, physical science investigations and education activities sponsored by NASA and the U.S. national laboratory.

The capsule is currently scheduled to splashdown in the Pacific Ocean at about 2:55 p.m. some 261 miles southwest of Long Beach, California.

Dragon is Healthy, Beginning Pursuit of ISS

Liftoff of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on CRS-8Residents aboard the International Space Station are expecting a cargo delivery Sunday.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Space Launch Complex 40 on Florida’s Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Friday afternoon carrying a Dragon spacecraft packed with nearly 7,000 pounds of science experiments, crew supplies and technology demonstrations bound for the orbiting laboratory. The on-time liftoff at 4:43 p.m. EDT set the spacecraft on a two-day chase of the station. (Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett. View larger)

“We’re very excited to have our cargo and Dragon safely on orbit and we’re looking forward to it arriving at the International Space Station,” said Kirk Shireman, manager of the International Space Station Program at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, adding that all systems on the station are ready to support the mission.

SpaceX reports the Dragon spacecraft is healthy and performing as expected. Its first orbital adjustment burn is scheduled for Saturday morning.

Dragon will arrive at the station Sunday. Watch the rendezvous and capture live on NASA TV beginning at 5:30 a.m. Sunday on NASA TV. Installation of the Dragon on the bottom side of the station’s Harmony module is set to begin at 9:30 a.m. For updates throughout the mission, visit www.nasa.gov/spacex.