Tag: NASA
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Crew Dragon’s astronauts give their SpaceX spaceship a storied name: Endeavour
NASA astronauts Doug Hurley (foreground) and Bob Behnken (background) provide a tour of their Crew Dragon space taxi. (NASA via YouTube) The two NASA astronauts who rode SpaceX’s first crew-carrying Dragon capsule to orbit today named their spacecraft, continuing a tradition that goes back to the earliest days of America’s space effort. “I know most…
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‘Light this candle!’ SpaceX sends NASA astronauts on historic trip to space station in Dragon capsule
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, sending NASA astronauts into orbit in a Crew Dragon capsule. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota) SpaceX launched two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station today, becoming the first company to send humans to orbit on a commercial spaceship. The Falcon 9 rocket’s liftoff…
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Weather concerns complicate plans for SpaceX’s next attempt to launch NASA astronauts
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine takes a question during a briefing at Kennedy Space Center’s countdown clock with NASA astronaut Nicole Mann standing behind him. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota) NASA and SpaceX are keeping a close eye on the weather in Florida and beyond as they get set for a second attempt to launch two…
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Weather forces delay for SpaceX’s historic launch of NASA’s first Dragon riders to the space station
Air Force One flies above Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying President Donald Trump to witness SpaceX’s Crew Dragon launch. Liftoff was postponed until Saturday due to weather concerns. (GeekWire Photo / Kevin Lisota) The countdown for SpaceX’s first crewed launch to the International Space Station ran down to less…
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With Demo-2, NASA finds itself in foreign yet familiar territory
As the transition from government-owned crew launch rockets to commercial providers arrives, NASA launch integration is in a very different position than it has been with other human spaceflight programs like Apollo and Shuttle. With all launches, hundreds of thousands of things have to align perfectly for a rocket to lift off. And many of…
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With Demo-2, NASA finds itself in foreign yet familiar territory
As the transition from government-owned crew launch rockets to commercial providers arrives, NASA launch integration is in a very different position than it has been with other human spaceflight programs like Apollo and Shuttle. With all launches, hundreds of thousands of things have to align perfectly for a rocket to lift off. And many of…
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NASA signs off on historic SpaceX crewed launch, leaving weather as final uncertainty
The sun rises with SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule sitting atop a Falcon 9 rocket at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (SpaceX Photo / Ben Cooper) Mission managers have cleared the final paperwork for SpaceX’s first-ever crewed launch, aimed at sending two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.…
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Why those sometimes annoying launch, landing weather rules exist
There’s an age-old joke amongst those who work with/launch rockets and those who cover their missions: If the rocket is ready to go, the weather will force you to try again another day. But why do NASA, the 45th Space Wing of the Space Force, their safety officers, and all launch providers make such a…
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NASA gives crucial thumbs-up to SpaceX’s historic crewed flight to space station
SpaceX conducts a static-fire test for its Falcon 9 rocket in advance of its Crew Dragon launch. (NASA Photo / Bill Ingalls) NASA today signed off on the first launch to send a crew into orbit from U.S. soil in nearly nine years, and the rocket for that launch had its final test firing. After…
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Examining Crew Dragon’s launch abort modes and splashdown locations
It’s a cliché statement to say Demo-2 will usher in a new era for human space exploration. That much is certain. But with each new crew launch vehicle comes the inevitable question: how will Crew Dragon actually perform a launch abort and how will it aim itself to predetermined locations in the Atlantic Ocean stretching…