NASA, SpaceX Work Toward Friday Morning Crew-12 Launch
NASA and SpaceX teams are continuing final preparations on Thursday as the four crew members of Crew-12 follow their own precise checklist of activities before they launch to the International Space Station. Crew-12 is set to lift off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 5:15 a.m. EST Friday, Feb. 13, aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket.
Weather forecasters issued an improved outlook for the launch site conditions, with a 90% chance of acceptable weather at launch time. They also will be watching the weather conditions along Crew-12’s flight path throughout the countdown, specifically the potential for elevated wind speeds. After detailed weather briefings Thursday morning, forecasters and mission managers opted to continue into the Crew-12 launch countdown. They will again review the forecast around 10 p.m. Thursday, a few hours before the crew suits up.
NASA astronauts Jessica Meir, commander, and Jack Hathaway, pilot, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev will fly aboard the Dragon spacecraft to begin an eight-month rotation aboard the space station, where they will conduct a host of experiments. They will return the orbiting laboratory to its full crew complement of seven crew members following the return of Crew-11 in January.
Crew-12 will be SpaceX’s 12th crew rotational flight to the space station and 13th crewed mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
Watch NASA’s live launch coverage starting at 3:15 a.m., on Feb. 13 on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media. Launch blog coverage begins at 1:15 a.m. on Feb. 13.
For a Feb. 13 launch, Crew-12 would arrive at the space station at approximately 3:15 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14. NASA’s live coverage of Crew-12’s arrival to the space station will begin at 1:15 p.m. on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel.




