SpaceX To Send Astronauts Home With Crew-9 Mission
A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is set to launch this Saturday, in a mission that will play an essential part towards sending the resupply to International Space Station (ISS), thanks for those 5,600 pounds of supplies and science gear. Crew-9 is set to bring NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov back from their ISS mission, one of four astronauts stuck on the station since SpaceX lost a crew last month.
Different kind of mission, and a smaller crew
The Dragon capsule, called “Freedom,” will carry only two crew instead of the normal four: NASA’s Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. At the same time, it is the only undocking that takes place with Sunita “Suni” Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore already seated, after their arrival on station in September; the duo have been aboard ISS for nearly eight months.
Williams and Wilmore were expected to come back from space on board Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. But technical issues with the Starliner’s thrusters and leaks in its helium system have led NASA to conclude that the spacecraft is unsafe for re-entry with astronauts still on board, prompting reliance on SpaceX’s reliable crew Dragon.
Return to Flight Planned For Later This Year at the Earliest Boeing’s Starliner Woes Further Delay Return
Williams and Wilmore launched to the ISS in early June on Boeing’s first crewed mission of the Starliner capsule. The original short term visit was prolonged indefinitely due to mechanical issues. NASA’s commercial crew program manager Steve Stich said that Boeing had “too much risk for the crew” with its mission, which resulted in NASA using SpaceX Dragon to bring back astronauts.
Launch Date: Falcon 9 Rocket To Launch From Cape Canaveral
The Falcon 9 rocket that will carry the Dragon capsule is set to launch at 1:17 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Hurricane Helene, which has brought destruction to the Florida coast earlier this week was also a reason the launch was canceled several times. Although the storm generated strong gusts of wind and sheets of rain, those conditions have since subsided enough to enable NASA and SpaceX officials to launch.
Crew-9: NASA Astronaut Nick Hague and Cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov
During the mission, veteran NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will stay aboard the ISS for around five months. Hague is a native of Kansas and an aeronautical engineer after being selected as a NASA astronaut in 2013. His first trip to orbit in 2018 — a visit to the space station with a Russian crewmate aboard a Soyuz capsule that experienced an inflight rocket booster combustion failure within two minutes of launch, triggering a high-speed abort thrusting the astronauts free of their launcher seats — was far more harrowing. He reached it on his second attempt and spent 203 days aboard the ISS.
Spaceflight participant Aleksandr Gorbunov, 34. A Russian aerospace engineer and former officer in the Russian armed forces, Gorbunov will join Nick Hague of NASA to conduct more than 200 experiments and technology demonstrations during their time aboard the ISS.
NASA Increasingly Relying on SpaceX
NASA signed a Commercial Crew Transportation Capability contract with SpaceX in 2010. Since 2020, the ISS has been serviced solely by crewed missions from SpaceX. The Dragon capsule is NASA’s only reliable way of getting astronauts to and from the International Space Station, since Boeing’s Starliner has suffered repeated setbacks. The mission will likely help to cement SpaceX’s status as a key player in NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
The Crew-9 mission —part of the expedition crew rotation on the ISS— is tasked with Expedition 72, which its primary objective to continue preparing the space station for future human exploration as we aim to someday venture beyond Earth’s orbit. Hague and Gorbunov will also be tasked with maintaining the ISS by conducting spacewalks, and performing research on the orbital laboratory in areas that will support long-duration human space exploration.
Returning to Earth in 2024
Williams and Wilmore arrived at the ISS in early June and are now due to return to Earth with Hague and Gorbunov in February 2024. The need for their longer visit to the space station came about from technical problems impacting Starliner, and soon they will be flown home aboard Dragon.
NASA TV Coverage and Launch Timeline
NASA will offer live coverage of the launch starting at 9:10 a.m. on NASA’s streaming service, NASA+, and its website. The Dragon will dock with the ISS on Sunday at 10:27 a.m. PT, and coverage will continue afterward at 3:30 p.m. PT during hatch opening..
NASA recently announced that the space agency will continue its collaboration with private companies like SpaceX in moving forward on goals related to human space travel.