{"id":10920,"date":"2021-10-08T18:26:33","date_gmt":"2021-10-08T10:26:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/astronauts-choose-endurance-as-name-for-new-spacex-crew-capsule\/"},"modified":"2021-10-08T18:26:33","modified_gmt":"2021-10-08T10:26:33","slug":"astronauts-choose-endurance-as-name-for-new-spacex-crew-capsule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/astronauts-choose-endurance-as-name-for-new-spacex-crew-capsule\/","title":{"rendered":"Astronauts choose \u2018Endurance\u2019 as name for new SpaceX crew capsule"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer and NASA astronauts Thomas Marshburn, Raja Chari, and Kayla Barron pose for a photo during training at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Credit: SpaceX<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The astronauts who will ride SpaceX\u2019s newest Dragon spaceship into orbit later this month said Thursday they named their spacecraft \u201cEndurance\u201d as a tribute to the human spirit and a historic sailing vessel used by Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton.<\/p>\n

The new spacecraft, previously known by serial number \u201cCapsule 210,\u201d is scheduled to launch Oct. 30 with three NASA astronauts and a European Space Agency flier heading for the International Space Station.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can stop calling it Capsule 210,\u201d said Raja Chari, commander of the mission. \u201cThe crew has come up with the name of the vehicle, which is \u2018Endurance.’\u201d<\/p>\n

Chari, a U.S. Air Force colonel, said the name \u201cspeaks to us on a number of levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst off, it\u2019s just a tribute to the the tenacity of human spirit as we push humans and machines farther than we ever have, going both to stay in extended stays for low earth orbit, opening it up to private companies and private astronauts, and knowing that we\u2019ll continue our exploration to go even farther,\u201d Chari said Thursday in a pre-flight news conference.<\/p>\n

He added that the name also honors the SpaceX and NASA teams that built the spacecraft and trained the astronauts who will fly it. Those workers endured through a pandemic, Chari said.<\/p>\n

SpaceX\u2019s first two crew-rated Dragon spaceships were named Endeavour and Resilience by the astronauts who first flew on them. Each privately-owned Crew Dragon spacecraft is certified for at least five space missions, and can stay docked at the space station for up to 210 days.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the really cool things about the SpaceX Dragon is we\u2019ll be the first ones to use Endurance, but it won\u2019t be the last time it\u2019s used,\u201d Chari said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to be used many times by many missions, and will continue to support long duration spaceflights.\u201d<\/p>\n

The name also honors the ship used by Shackleton\u2019s Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition. The three-masted vessel sank in 1915 after being stranded in ice before reaching Antarctica.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was a huge fan of reading about the Shackleton voyage,\u201d said Tom Marshburn, the pilot on the next Crew Dragon mission. \u201cIt speaks a lot toward exploration, too, even though they didn\u2019t accomplish their goal. And we certainly want to accomplish our goals.<\/p>\n

\u201cStill, the crew came back healthy,\u201d Marshburn said. \u201cIt was a wonderful example of leadership, and the word itself \u2026 We, as a nation, as a spacefaring nation, or any spacefaring nation, and individuals who are involved, have to demonstrate endurance.\u201d<\/p>\n

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SpaceX\u2019s Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft arrives at the nternational Space Station in April. Credit: NASA\/Mike Hopkins<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Crew-3 mission set for liftoff Oct. 30 is the fifth crew flight on a SpaceX spacecraft, and the third operational crew rotation flight under contract to NASA.<\/p>\n

Chari, a first-time space flier and Air Force fighter pilot, commands the mission. Marshburn is set to launch on this third trip to space, following previous launches on a space shuttle and a Russian Soyuz capsule.<\/p>\n

Rookie NASA astronaut Kayla Barron and European Space Agency mission specialist Matthias Maurer, who is also making his first trip into space, round out the four-person crew.<\/p>\n

Their mission is set for blastoff Oct. 30 at 2:43 a.m. EDT (0643 GMT) aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from pad 39A at NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Assuming an on-time launch, their Crew Dragon capsule will glide to an automated docking at the International Space Station early on Oct. 31, beginning a half-year expedition on the complex.<\/p>\n

Chari and his crewmates will replace the four-person Crew-2 team of astronauts, who arrived at the space station in April. They are scheduled to return to Earth in early November on SpaceX\u2019s Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft, targeting a parachute-assisted splashdown off the coast of Florida.<\/p>\n

Email the author.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer and NASA astronauts Thomas Marshburn, Raja Chari, and Kayla Barron pose for a photo during training at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Credit: SpaceX The astronauts who will ride SpaceX\u2019s newest Dragon spaceship into orbit later this month said Thursday they named their spacecraft \u201cEndurance\u201d as a tribute to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10920","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10920"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10920"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10920\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}