An international crew of four representing four countries is in orbit following a successful launch to the International Space Station at 3:27 a.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 26, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The agency’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission is the seventh commercial crew rotation mission for NASA. A SpaceX Falcon …
The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, commander; ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, pilot; and mission specialists JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov to the International Space Station has safely reached orbit, and the nosecone has opened. A postlaunch news conference will be held at approximately …
Dragon has separated from the second stage and is flying on its own. The spacecraft is traveling at approximately 17,000 miles per hour (27,000 kilometers per hour). About one minute later, the Dragon nosecone open sequence will begin.
Stage 1 of the Falcon 9 rocket completed its descent and landed at SpaceX’s Landing Zone 1 at nearby Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, becoming the first booster for a commercial crew flight to return to the station for recovery.
The second stage engine continues to burn. We’re about eight minutes into flight, and all is well. In about a minute, the second stage engine will shut down.
The rocket has reached first stage main engine cutoff (MECO), and the first and second stages have separated. Next, the second stage engine will start.
Max Q, or the moment of peak mechanical stress on the rocket, has been reached. In the next minute, the Falcon 9 rocket’s first stage will separate from the second stage to attempt a landing at SpaceX’s Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. If successful, this will be the first commercial crew …
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft Endurance light up the early morning Florida sky! NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, commander; ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, pilot; and mission specialists JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov have started their approximately 22-hour journey to the International Space Station …
Five minutes to liftoff, and all looks good for the Crew-7 launch!
Fuel loading is complete on the second stage, and liquid oxygen loading has begun. Everything remains on target for the 3:27 a.m. EDT launch of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
