First manned Dragon flight scheduled for May 27th
Capitalism in space: NASA today officially announced May 27, 2020 as the scheduled launch date for the first manned Dragon flight to ISS, the first time American astronauts will fly from American soil on an American rocket in an American spacecraft since the shuttle was retired almost a decade ago.
The launch is set for 4:32 pm (Eastern), and I am sure will be live streams by both NASA and SpaceX.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Capitalism in space: NASA today officially announced May 27, 2020 as the scheduled launch date for the first manned Dragon flight to ISS, the first time American astronauts will fly from American soil on an American rocket in an American spacecraft since the shuttle was retired almost a decade ago.
The launch is set for 4:32 pm (Eastern), and I am sure will be live streams by both NASA and SpaceX.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Cool! So 27 May is a Wednesday, just under six weeks from now.
https://www.nasa.gov/specials/dm2/
Although the Crew Dragon being used for this flight test can stay in orbit about 110 days, the specific mission duration will be determined once on station based on the readiness of the next commercial crew launch. The operational Crew Dragon spacecraft will be capable of staying in orbit for at least 210 days as a NASA requirement.
I understand that they want this one back about one month prior to the launch of SpX/PCM-1 (Post Certification Mission 1) so they can study the capsule and its reentry, landing, and recovery performance before committing to the following launch.
BOOO-Yah! That is excellent news, and a welcome beacon of hope in this muck we’ve been wading through.
* https://spaceflightnow.com/2020/04/17/nasa-spacex-set-may-27-as-target-date-for-first-crew-launch/
In an interview with Spaceflight Now last week, Bridenstine cited several focus areas as SpaceX and NASA march toward launch of the Demo-2 test flight. They included completing two final parachute tests, data reviews, and ensuring the astronauts and ground teams remain healthy during the global coronavirus pandemic.
One of the two remaining parachute tests was successfully completed last weekend after dropping a test rig from a C-130 cargo plane. SpaceX changed the testing plan after a helicopter drop test in March was cut short when the test rig became unstable, forcing the pilot to prematurely release the device that simulates the mass of the Crew Dragon spacecraft. … One more parachute drop test from the C-130 cargo plane is scheduled for early May. That will be the final planned parachute test before the Demo-2 launch.
Fingers crossed. Let hope the schedule holds.
Hope the astronauts won’t have to keep six feet apart throughout the mission. Vote wisely this November [if the Red Coats haven’t taken over by then].