SpaceX

Named for the Millennium Falcon of Star Wars fame, the SpaceX Falcon 9 is the booster that sends the Dragon spacecraft , loaded with cargo and experiments, into orbit.

The Falcon 9 and Dragon combination measures 208-feet-tall and is 12 feet in diameter. The first stage is powered by nine Merlin 1D engines that produce 1.3 million pounds of thrust at liftoff. The first stage engines burn for about three minutes to push the Dragon out of the atmosphere. The second stage of the Falcon is powered by a single Merlin 1D engine. It places Dragon in its final orbital trajectory to catch up to the International Space Station.

After the second stage separates, small thrusters on the Dragon make adjustments to the orbit to steer the spacecraft into a position where the station’s robotic arm can capture the spacecraft and connect it to the orbiting laboratory.

Among the Dragon’s cargo are materials that will contribute to 40 of the experiments that the crew members of Expeditions 43 and 44 will conduct, including astronaut Scott Kelly, who recently began a yearlong mission on the International Space Station. The studies cover the effects of radiation on cells, fluid shifts in astronauts and the weakening of muscles and bone loss in microgravity. All the work has potential applications for people on Earth and astronauts who will make a journey to Mars.

Air Force Weather Officer Mike McAleenan reports that conditions look better than yesterday and thick clouds are farther away from the launch site than at this point in the countdown on Monday. His team’s forecast remains 60 percent chance of “go” conditions for today’s attempt at 4:10 p.m. EDT.

The Dragon spacecraft will spend five weeks connected to the International Space Station during its sixth unmanned supply flight. During that time, astronauts on the orbiting laboratory will first remove the more than two tons of supplies and equipment from inside the Dragon and then pack it up with spent experiment, used gear such as computer hardware that is no longer needed and other materials that need to be returned to Earth intact. Dragon will eventually hold about 3,000 pounds of items when it is closed and detached from the station to begin its descent back to Earth. The Dragon is equipped with a heat shield to survive the fall through the atmosphere before parachutes billow open to allow a safe landing on the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California.

Good afternoon from Florida! The launch teams are prepping the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft for launch today on the sixth commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station by the company. Liftoff is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. EDT and there are no technical issues in work at this time. The weather continues to draw a lot of attention today with forecasters calling for a 60 percent chance of acceptable conditions at launch time.
The Dragon is loaded with 4,300 pounds of equipment, experiments and material bound for the station crew. The research equipment will be used off the Earth so astronauts on the station can use it to decipher problems for the people on Earth. We’ll talk more about the science experiments and countdown status as we move through the countdown today. Again, everything looks good right now for this afternoon’s launch of CRS-6 at 4:10 p.m.

 

The Falcon 9 launch team is loading the rocket’s two stages with liquid oxygen and refined kerosene this afternoon as the rocket is readied for a launch attempt at 4:10 p.m. EDT. The forecast continues to call for a 60 percent chance of acceptable conditions at launch time here at Cape Canaveral, Fla. Join us at 3 p.m. on NASA’s Launch Blog and on NASA TV for continuous countdown updates and launch coverage as the Falcon 9 and Dragon spacecraft lift off carrying supplies and experiments to the International Space Station.

The latest commercial resupply mission to the International Space Station is scheduled to launch today at 4:10 p.m. from Cape Canaveral, Florida, where all eyes will again be on the weather the closer we get to liftoff. The forecast improved this morning to a 60 percent chance of acceptable conditions at launch time. Air Force meteorologists will be watching for storms or thick clouds moving close to the launch site.

Our continuous countdown coverage will begin at 3 p.m. here on NASA’s Launch Blog and on NASA TV. A SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket topped with a Dragon spacecraft also built by SpaceX remains poised for space following yesterday’s weather-induced scrub.

The uncrewed Dragon will be making the sixth operational cargo delivery mission to the orbiting laboratory and is stocked with 4,300 pounds of material including items for 40 experiments to be performed off the Earth for the benefit of those on the Earth and to study the effects on astronauts of long-duration spaceflight akin to what they’d face on a journey to Mars.

 

Because of weather conditions that violated the rules for launching, SpaceX has postponed its planned launch of its Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon spacecraft. It is SpaceX’s sixth commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station.

The next launch opportunity is Tuesday, April 14, at 4:10:40 p.m. EDT. Our continuous launch coverage will begin at 3 p.m. here on the launch blog and on NASA Television at https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv.

As for tomorrow’s forecast, it’s slightly worse tomorrow with forecasters predicting a 50 percent chance of acceptable conditions.