SpaceX Crew-2 will definitely return to Earth on Monday instead of Sunday. On the other hand, the launch of Crew-3 is still scheduled for Wednesday so far.
The departure time of Space X Crew-2 from the International Space Station (ISS) has been slightly adjusted. They are set to return to Earth “no earlier than 10:33 PM Eastern Time on Monday”, NASA Announce Sunday. This change was made after the “planned weather review”, which found that wind was “unfavorable” for the recovery of the splash zone in the Gulf of Mexico.
In order to return to Earth, Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency, Aki Hoshide of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur of NASA, and approximately 530 pounds of scientific research and hardware crew Long Endeavour will be carried on board at 2 pm Departed from the orbital laboratory at 05:00 and splashed into one of the target landing areas off the coast of Florida.
“NASA and SpaceX are closely coordinating with the U.S. Coast Guard to establish a safe zone around the expected splash location to ensure the safety of the public and personnel involved in recovery operations and crew members returning to the spacecraft,” NASA noted.
Crew-3 launch
As for the launch of the NASA SpaceX Crew-3 mission, the mission has Originally scheduled for October 31 But it was postponed several times, and the latest change set it to launch at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida “no earlier than 9:03 pm.” If everything goes according to plan, the Crew Dragon spacecraft is expected to dock with the International Space Station at 7:10 on Thursday night.
original, plan It is for SpaceX Crew-2 astronauts and other Expedition 66 members to greet the arriving Crew-3 members during a short handover period before the Crew-2 members set off for Earth. However, from weather issues to medical issues for a Crew-3 member, these changes and delays mean that Crew-2 will have to leave the International Space Station before the new crew arrives.
So far, the weather seems to be conducive to the delay of the launch until Wednesday.
“After Crew-2 returns to Earth, Falcon 9 will launch the dragon’s third long-term crew mission to the space station on Wednesday, November 10; the weather forecast is 80% favorable for lift-off,” SpaceX noted in a tweet.
These missions are part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which aims to provide “safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station” through cooperation with private companies.
Photo: NASA/Nick Hager
