SpaceX set to launch next International Space Station crew for NASA
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.听–听Elon Musk’s rocket company听厂辫补肠别齿听was听蝉别迟听to听濒补耻苍肠丑听early on Monday the听滨苍迟别谤苍补迟颈辞苍补濒听厂辫补肠别听Station‘s听苍别虫迟听long-duration team into orbit, with an astronaut from the United Arab Emirates and a Russian cosmonaut joining two听狈础厂础听肠谤别飞mates for the flight.
The听厂辫补肠别齿听濒补耻苍肠丑听vehicle, consisting of a Falcon 9 rocket topped with an autonomously operated听颁谤别飞听Dragon capsule called Endeavour, was听蝉别迟听for liftoff at 1:45 a.m. EST (0645 GMT) from听狈础厂础‘s Kennedy聽厂辫补肠别听Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The four-member听肠谤别飞聽should reach the听滨苍迟别谤苍补迟颈辞苍补濒听厂辫补肠别听厂迟补迟颈辞苍听(ISS) about 25 hours later, on Tuesday morning, to begin a six-month mission in microgravity aboard the orbiting laboratory some 250 miles (420 km) above Earth.
Designated听颁谤别飞听6, the mission marks the sixth long-term ISS team that听狈础厂础聽has flown aboard听厂辫补肠别齿听since the private rocket venture founded by Mr. Musk – billionaire CEO of electric car maker Tesla聽and social media platform Twitter – began sending American astronauts to orbit in May 2020.
狈础厂础听said the mission’s听濒补耻苍肠丑听readiness review was completed on Saturday, and that the flight was given a “go” to proceed to liftoff as planned.
“All systems and weather are looking good for听濒补耻苍肠丑,” Mr. Musk wrote on Twitter on Sunday.
The latest ISS听肠谤别飞聽is led by mission commander Stephen Bowen, 59, a onetime US Navy submarine officer who has logged more than 40 days in orbit as a veteran of three听蝉辫补肠别听shuttle flights and seven听蝉辫补肠别walks.
Fellow听狈础厂础聽astronaut Warren “Woody” Hoburg, 37, an engineer and commercial aviator designated as the听颁谤别飞听6 pilot, will be making his first听蝉辫补肠别flight.
The听颁谤别飞听6 mission also is notable for its inclusion of UAE astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, 41, only the second person from his country to fly to听蝉辫补肠别听and the first to听濒补耻苍肠丑听from US soil as part of a long-duration听蝉辫补肠别听蝉迟补迟颈辞苍听team. UAE’s first-ever astronaut听濒补耻苍肠丑ed to orbit in 2019 aboard a Russian听蝉辫补肠别craft.
Rounding out the four-man听颁谤别飞听6 is Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, 41, who like Alneyadi is an engineer and听蝉辫补肠别flight rookie designated as a mission specialist for the team.
Fedyaev is the latest cosmonaut to fly aboard an American听蝉辫补肠别craft under a ride-sharing deal signed in July by听狈础厂础聽and the Russian听蝉辫补肠别听agency Roscosmos, despite heightened tensions between Washington and Moscow over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The听颁谤别飞听6 team will be welcomed aboard the听蝉辫补肠别听蝉迟补迟颈辞苍听by seven current ISS occupants – three US听狈础厂础听肠谤别飞聽members, including commander Nicole Aunapu Mann, the first Native American woman to fly to听蝉辫补肠别, along with three Russians and a Japanese astronaut.
The ISS, about the length of a football field and the largest artificial object in听蝉辫补肠别, has been continuously operated by a US-Russian-led consortium that includes Canada, Japan and 11 European countries.
The outpost was conceived in part as a venture to improve relations between Washington and Moscow following the Soviet Union’s collapse and the end of Cold War rivalries that gave rise to the original US-Soviet听蝉辫补肠别听race in the 1950s and 1960s.
NASA-Roscosmos cooperation has been tested as never before since Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, leading the United States to impose sweeping sanctions against Moscow while steadily increasing military aid to the Ukrainian government.
The听颁谤别飞听6 mission also follows two recent mishaps in which Russian听蝉辫补肠别craft docked to the orbiting laboratory sprang coolant leaks apparently caused micrometeoroids, tiny grains of听蝉辫补肠别听rock, streaking through听蝉辫补肠别听and striking the craft at high velocity.
One of the affected Russian vehicles was a Soyuz听肠谤别飞聽capsule that had carried two cosmonauts and an astronaut to the听蝉辫补肠别听蝉迟补迟颈辞苍听in September for a six-month mission now听蝉别迟听to end in March. An empty replacement Soyuz to bring them home blasted off on Friday and arrived at the听蝉辫补肠别听蝉迟补迟颈辞苍听on Saturday. – Reuters
