Demo-2 Mission
Doug and Bob are back on planet Earth. The Crew Dragon capsule splashed down safely at 2:48 PM EDT in the Gulf of Mexico. Sunday's splashdown marked NASA's first water landing since 1975.
Bob and Doug are getting ready for splashdown. The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule successfully undocked from the ISS on Saturday night at 7:35 PM EDT. NASA's astronauts Robert L. Behnken and Douglas G. Hurley had been in Space since May, joining NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and two Russian Russian astronauts, Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner.
If the weather and sea conditions in the Gulf of Mexico remain favorable, splashdown will be at 2:48 PM EDT on Sunday.
Bob and Doug are coming home. SpaceX's Crew Dragon will undock from the ISS at 7:34 PM EDT on August 1. Splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Panama City is expected at around 2:42 PM EDT on August 2.
A final decision on whether to proceed with the mission will be made approximately six hours before undocking and will largely depend on weather conditions and Hurricane Isais, which is currently headed towards Florida.
Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley are coming home. SpaceX's Crew Dragon is set to return home to Earth on August 1 and splashdown is targeted for August 2. The actual date though is depending on the weather.
NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley will return to Earth from the ISS on SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft in August. Their exact return date will depend on numerous factors such as weather conditions, the astronauts' work progress onboard ISS as well as the overall condition and performance of Crew Dragon.
NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 launch has been aborted due to bad weather conditions. The launch can not be postponed today as it was instantaneous. The mission will be resumed on Saturday.
The crew access has been retracted and the emergency escape system is armed. The weather at Kennedy Space Center had been an issue earlier and will be tracked “all the way down to launch". At 3:56 p.m., SpaceX has begun fueling the Falcon 9 rocket.
NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 is set to launch in just 45 minutes. At 2:35 p.m. EDT, the Crew Dragon hatch has been closed, just 15 minutes before the Air Force One carrying Donald Trump flew over the launchpad 39A.
Everyday Astronaut's Tim Dodd is providing a livestream of NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 launch on his YouTube channel. Dodd is stationed about 3 miles away from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to capture the launch of the first private spacecraft to transport astronauts into low-Earth orbit. The launch will be at 4:33 p.m. EDT.
NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 mission is set to launch on May 27 at 4:33 p.m. EDT. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft will transport two NASA astronauts to the International Space Station to provide "critical data on the performance of the Falcon 9 rocket, Crew Dragon spacecraft, and ground systems, as well as in-orbit, docking, and landing operations".
With the first crewed space flight from American soil in nine years scheduled for Wednesday, Dough Hurley and Bob Behnken have completed their dress rehearsal. The two astronauts will be the first ones to fly in a SpaceX Falcon rocket and Crew Dragon capsule. The liftoff is scheduled for Wednesday 16:33 EDT (20:33 GMT / 21:33 BST).
The resignation of Doug Loverro as associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations at came just days before the launch of Commercial Crew Demo-2. His departure was abrupt and rather unexpected.
In a note sent to his colleagues, he wrote: "The risks we take, whether technical, political, or personal, all have potential consequences if we judge them incorrectly. I took such a risk earlier in the year because I judged it necessary to fulfil our mission. Now, over the balance of time, it is clear that I made a mistake in that choice for which I alone must bear the consequences." It's unknown what mistake he is referring to.
NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley have been working and training on SpaceX's next-generation human space vehicle. The two astronauts will lift off on a Falcon 9 rocket on May 27 from the Launch Complex 39A in Florida that will take them to the International Space Station for an extended stay for the Demo-2 mission. NASA calls this mission a "new era of human spaceflight" and believe it will "not only renew American capability to launch astronauts from U.S. soil" but it will also "expand the number of crew members on board the station".