Two NASA astronauts, along with astronauts from the Japanese and Russian space agencies, are embarking on a six-month mission to the International Space Station. You can watch the action live right here.
The SpaceX Crew-5 mission for NASA, the fifth under a commercial crew program agreement, is scheduled to lift off at noon ET on Wednesday, Oct. 3 from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. Hurricane Ian tore through the region just a week ago, but the facility emerged unscathed from the powerful storm. A launch readiness review on Tuesday cleared the mission for launch, pending resolution of three outstanding minor issues that were subsequently addressed.
A webcast of the Falcon 9 launch began at 8:00 a.m. ET and is available on NASA TV, NASA’s YouTube page, and the SpaceX website. In the event that the release needs to be cleaned up, a backup opportunity is available on Thursday, October 6th at 11:38am ET.
The Falcon 9 reusable first stage will attempt a landing on the Just Read the Instructions dronship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. Inside the Crew Dragon will be NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. Crew Dragon Endurance is expected to dock at the ISS Harmony module at 4:57 PM ET on October 6, where they will be greeted by the Expedition 68 crew.
Kikina’s participation in the launch is due to a seat exchange agreement between NASA and Roscosmos. On September 1, NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and two cosmonauts flew to the ISS on a Russian Soyuz rocket, and now it’s NASA’s turn to return the favor. Kikina will become the first cosmonaut to ride aboard a SpaceX dragon.
Crew-5 crew members (from left): Anna Kikina, mission specialist; Josh Cassada, pilot; Nicole Mann, spaceship commander; and Koichi Wakata, mission specialist. (Photo: SpaceX)
The seat swap deal comes at an exceptionally awkward time as Russia’s unprovoked war in Ukraine continues. NASA officials have remained relatively quiet about the war in an effort to preserve the international space-based partnership, but the agency openly rebuked Russia in July for using the ISS to promote its propaganda in favor of war Regardless, the seat swap doesn’t look good.
Once aboard the ISS, the crew will participate in more than 200 science and technology experiments, including studies on printing human organs in space, an experiment to better understand how fuel systems will work on the Moon, and a heart disease research.
The astronauts of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 will soon have to say goodbye to the newly arrived crew, as this group is scheduled to leave the ISS several days after the arrival of Crew-5. Heading home are NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines and Jessica Watkins, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti.
More: Hurricane Ian boosts NASA’s next Moon rocket launch attempt in November.