NASA and SpaceX are set to launch Crew 7 to the International Space Station early Saturday morning, with lift-off scheduled for 3:27 a.m. ET (07:27 UTC) from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center.
NASA and SpaceX held off on the primary attempt just prior to crew walkout as a way to “reconfirm required aspects of safety and operational margin on one in every of Dragon spacecraft’s environmental control and life support system (ECLSS) components.” NASA stated all valves on the Crew 6 and seven Dragon capsules are performing normally.
Crew 7’s ride to the Space Station can be Crew Dragon Endurance and Falcon 9 Booster 1081. The trip will take a couple of day, with docking scheduled at 8:50 a.m. ET on the twenty seventh.
SpaceX and NASA are actually targeting no sooner than Saturday, August 26 for Falcon 9 to launch Dragon to the @space_station. The brand new launch date provides teams additional time to finish and discuss evaluation. The vehicles remain healthy and crew is able to fly →… pic.twitter.com/ojWTwRTS8v
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 25, 2023
Crew 7 consists of NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli (Mission Commander), European Spacey Agency astronaut Andreas Mogensen (Pilot), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Satoshi Furukawa (Mission Specialist), and Russian cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov (Mission Specialist).
The crew will walk out three and a half hours prior to launch from the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Constructing and take a ride in specially modified Tesla Model X’s to LC-39A after which ride the elevator up the launch tower, where they are going to make a phone call to family members before boarding Endurance.
Once strapped into their seats, the SpaceX team will clear the vehicle and shut the hatch. The launch abort system can be armed at t-minus 36 minutes, followed shortly by fueling the first and 2nd stages.
After lift-off, the primary and second stages will separate, and Booster 1081 will perform a boostback burn to land back at Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Through the landing process, the second stage will proceed to orbit with an engine burn about 6 minutes long before entering a brief coast phase after which separation of 2nd stage and Crew Dragon Endurance.
Once docked with the ISS, the crew will stay roughly six months aboard the orbiting outpost conducting experiments and maintenance.
The present weather outlook is positive, with a 95% likelihood of acceptable weather.
The launch webcast will begin 4 hours prior to launch.