For SpaceUpClose.com & RocketSTEM
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FL – After several delays for weather and a ‘minor medical issue’ affecting one of the four multinational Crew-3 crew members NASA faced a dilemma juggling competing priorities for the Crew-2 vs. the Crew-3 teams of astronauts already on-board vs. those set to head to the International Space Station (ISS) from Florida’s Spaceport.
Update: Crew-2 Departure & Return delayed to Monday, Nov. 8
Ultimately NASA managers decided to do an indirect handover rather than a direct handover between the two astronaut teams and bring the Crew-2 quartet home this Sunday, Nov. 7, before launching the Crew-3 quartet later next week because the agency wishes to return Crew-2 in favorable splashdown weather conditions while also retaining margin for the Crew Dragon on orbit which has a certification limit of 210 days on orbit.
As currently planned Crew-2 will undock from the ISS onboard Crew Dragon Endeavour no earlier than (NET) 1:05 p.m. EST Sunday, Nov. 7, to begin the voyage home and culminating in a splashdown off the coast of Florida and ‘most likely’ in The Gulf of Mexico no earlier than 7:14 a.m. EST (12:14 GMT) Monday, Nov. 8.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-3 mission is targeting launch NET 9:03 p.m. EST Wednesday, Nov. 10, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida – but only if Crew-2 undocks Sunday.
Thus the Crew-3 launch is left somewhat in limbo until Crew-2 arrives back home on Earth – likely with a Gulf of Mexico splashdown if the somewhat iffy weather permits.
A back up Crew-2 departure opportunity is available on Monday – if weather conditions are not favorable for the primary opportunity Sunday.
With the two astronaut mission schedules in flux and interdependent to a degree on one another NASA and SpaceX “have been continually reviewing launch and return opportunities for the upcoming crew rotation flights to and from the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program” over the past week as the Crew-3 liftoff was delayed multiple time by poor weather and the health of one astronaut.
NASA said mission teams had to consider “whether to return the agency’s SpaceX Crew-2 mission from the space station ahead of launching the next crew rotation due to the associated weather considerations for both launch and recovery operations.”
Liftoff of the NASA ESA SpaceX Crew-3 crew rotation mission to the ISS had already been reset to the wee hours of Wednesday early morning, Nov.3. – skipping the originally planned and hoped for Halloween treat liftoff Sunday, Oct. 31 – due to poor downrange weather invading the northern Atlantic Ocean with a “large storm system elevating winds and waves” along the trajectory where the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule would fly and have to abort in case of a launch emergency problem with the rocket.
NASA said the “minor medical issue” was not an emergency and not related to the Covid-19 pandemic. The agency also did not identify which of the four astronaut crew members from America and Germany was involved.
“UPDATE: We’re now targeting no earlier than 7:14am ET (12:14 UTC) Mon., Nov. 8 for the @SpaceX Crew-2 astronauts’ return to Earth from the @Space_Station,” NASA tweeted.
UPDATE: We're now targeting no earlier than 7:14am ET (12:14 UTC) Mon., Nov. 8 for the @SpaceX Crew-2 astronauts' return to Earth from the @Space_Station.
Check out the full schedule and tune in for updates: https://t.co/WUYhjK1Lzl pic.twitter.com/NJEiamAklg
— NASA (@NASA) November 6, 2021
As currently planned a Crew -2 departure from ISS on Sunday, Nov. 7 marks Day 199 of the Crew Dragon Endeavour elapsed time on orbit – out of the 210 day certification limit which runs until Nov. 19.
Crew-2 is comprised of NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Aki Hoshide, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet.
The spacecraft also will return to Earth with about 530 pounds of hardware and scientific investigations.
Endeavour will undock autonomously and NASA had planned for the crew to perform a fly around maneuver to photograph the exterior of the International Space Station.
Once the maneuver is completed the Crew Dragon spacecraft will aim for a splashdown at one of seven targeted landing zones in the Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida – most likely the Gulf.
NASA SpaceX Crew-2 launched on April 23 this year from KSC for a six month science mission on the station.
You can watch NASA TV for live coverage of Crew-2 undocking and splashdown events.
Here is the NASA TV schedule:
Sunday, Nov. 7
10:45 a.m. EST– Coverage begins for 11:10 a.m. hatch closure
12:45 p.m. EST– Coverage begins for 1:05 p.m. undocking (NASA will provide continuous coverage from undocking to splashdown)
Monday, Nov. 8
7:14 a.m. EST– Splashdown
Crew-2 is the second of six NASA and SpaceX crewed missions to fly as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, which is working with the U.S. aerospace industry to launch astronauts on American rockets and spacecraft from American soil.
The multinational Crew-3 team is comprised of NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, and Kayla Barron, along with ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Matthias Maurer from Germany.
They arrived at the Launch and Landing Facility (formerly the SLF Shuttle Landing Facility on Tuesday afternoon, Oct. 26 aboard a NASA Gulfstream jet at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center after departing from their Texas training base voa Ellington Field near the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston – for the then planned Halloween Oct. 31 liftoff.
Whenever the time and conditions are right they will launch on the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft and its recycled Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida.
If Crew Dragon Endurance launches Wednesday, Nov. 10 it is scheduled to dock to the space station around 7:10 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 11.
Ken’s comments about the Crew-3 mission were featured in a Nov. 5 broadcast on WKMG CBS 6 Orlando TV News:
Ken’s photos of the static fire test were featured on WKMG CBS 6 Orlando TV News
Ken is onsite at KSC for the Crew-3 mission launch campaign
Watch Ken’s continuing reports about SpaceX Crew and Cargo Dragons, Artemis, SLS, Orion and NASA missions, Lucy Asteroid mission, Blue Origin and Space Tourism, SpaceX Starlink, Commercial Crew and Starliner and Crew Dragon and onsite for live reporting of upcoming and recent SpaceX and ULA launches including Crew 1 & 2 & 3, ISS, Solar Orbiter, Mars 2020 Perseverance and Curiosity rovers, NRO spysats and national security missions and more at the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Stay tuned here for Ken’s continuing Earth and Planetary science and human spaceflight news: www.kenkremer.com –www.spaceupclose.com – twitter @ken_kremer – email: ken at kenkremer.com
Dr. Kremer is a research scientist and journalist based in the KSC area, active in outreach and interviewed regularly on TV and radio about space topics.
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