Blogs

SpaceX (SpX)-3 Dragon Ingress and Cargo Transfer:  Dragon hatch was opened earlier this morning. The crew began cargo operations by removing the Common Cabin Air Assembly (CCAA) Heat Exchanger  (HX) from the center stack.  Double cold bags were removed ahead of schedule. Dragon unpack continued throughout the day. Hybrid Training Part Eight: Commander (CDR) Wakata …

Every month we offer a puzzling satellite image here on Earth Matters. The April 2014 puzzler is above. Your challenge is to use the comments section to tell us what the image shows, what part of the world we are looking at, when the image was acquired, and why the scene is interesting. How to answer. Your answer […]

SpaceX (SpX)-3 Dragon Capture/Berth and Ingress:  The crew captured Dragon at 6:14am CDT today.  During the approach, there were some minor Ultra High Frequency (UHF) comm dropouts, but the channel swap-overs were well within Fault Detection Isolation and Recovery (FDIR) time constraints.  Berthing to the Node 2 Nadir port was performed by the ground teams.  …

SpaceX (SpX)-3 Launch: SpX-3 launched from Cape Canaveral today at 2:25pm CDT.  After launch there was a delay with pressurization in part of the propulsion system.  Pressurization was completed later and SpX3 is proceeding toward capture on Sunday, April 20, at 6:14am CDT. Hybrid Training Part Seven: Commander (CDR) Wakata donned the Hybrid Training hardware …

We have spent the last few weeks discussing the differences between inherent and apparent optical properties in the ocean and how we measure them. Now let’s take a moment to appreciate the information these data give us. I am sure many of you have seen satellite images of the ocean, hurricanes, etc. on the news and at other outlets. A lot of work goes into each and every one of those images and they can show remarkable things on a global scale that would be difficult to detect through fieldwork alone.

The single engine on the second stage is now lifting the Dragon spacecraft into orbit following the burnout and separation of the first stage and its nine engines. The rocket is about 50 miles high and traveling at Mach 10. The second stage engine, the same kind as those on the first stage, lit on …

The SpaceX rocket continues to pick up speed as it pushed high into space. The rocket just crossed through the region of maximum dynamic pressure, known as Max Q, and all the systems are working as planned.

Dragon is on the way to the International Space Station! The nine engines on the Falcon 9’s first stage ignited on time to lift the rocket and spacecraft off the ground. It will take about nine minutes for Dragon to reach orbit.

T-2 minutes, 30 seconds . . . The SpaceX launch director gave the go for launch. The Eastern Range operated by the Air Force also is ready for liftoff.