The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is ready for launch for the Crew Demo-2 Mission.
UPDATE: A successful lift-off!
Today—Saturday—is the day for the SpaceX launch for “Launch America” with NASA. After Wednesday’s scrubbed launch, Saturday, May 30 at 3:22 p.m. EDT will see two US astronauts will launch to the International Space Station (ISS) from US soil, and on a US rocket.
Since weather prospects mean there’s only around a 50% chance of a successful launch at that time, there are also two back-up launch dates:
- Sunday, May 31 at 3:00 p.m. EDT, or 19:00 UTC
- Tuesday, June 2 (time TBC)
(You can convert that to your own timezone here)
A crewed NASA spaceflight has not launched from the US for almost a decade, and it’s going to be a massive, unmissable event. The pandemic means it’s also going to be an event that’s almost entirely staged online.
Get ready for some iconic imagery as NASA relieves Apollo-era imagery and SpaceX puts the astronauts in a Tesla Model X before a Falcon 9 rocket blasts-off to space to make history.
What is ‘Launch America?’
It’s the culmination of almost a decade’s work to get US astronauts launched to the ISS on a US rocket from US soil. Since the Space Shuttle stopped flying in 2011, NASA has had to pay Russia’s Roscosmos for seats in its Soyuz capsule. However, “Launch America”—officially known as the SpaceX Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission—isn’t just NASA ceasing its reliance on Russia. SpaceX’s provision of all the space hardware—a Falcon 9 rocket and its Crew Dragon capsule—make this also the first-ever crewed commercial rocket launch.
Although arguably the first-ever crewed launch was in December 2018 when Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity “spaceliner” reached the edge of space. It launched from California.
There’s a lot riding on this; specifically, NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, who are on their way up to the ISS.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft onboard is seen as it is raised ... [+]
Will anyone be in Florida to see it live?
Hardly anybody will witness this historic launch. “NASA and SpaceX are discouraging the general public because it is very dangerous to be gathering it in large groups like that,” says Garrett Reisman, SpaceX Senior Advisor and former NASA Astronaut, who thinks that in normal times this event would draw enormous crowds in Florida. “Yes, it’s going to be different, but given all the things that were sacrificing to keep people safe during this pandemic, I think that’s OK.”
Luckily, there’s going to be extensive coverage streamed online as webcasts from SpaceX and NASA, and possibly as live broadcasts on US TV networks.
When to watch ‘Launch America’ streaming live online
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will lift-off at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30, 2020, with backup launch dates of Sunday, May 31 and Tuesday, June 2.
How to watch ‘Launch America’ streaming live online: SpaceX
As well as the coverage from NASA, SpaceX has plans to stream the events live on the SpaceX YouTube channel and on the SpaceX website via its HQ in Hawthorne, California.
Its webcast will begin around four hours before launch.
How to watch ‘Launch America’ streaming live online: NASA TV
If you want a lot more than just the immediate pre-launch build-up, then head to:
NASA's "Worm" logo is making a comeback for this mission—here it is on the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
‘Launch America’: what’s going to happen on the day
Here’s what NASA says is going to happen on May 27,
This is the confirmed schedule on NASA TV. All times are in EDT:
- 11 a.m. – Coverage begins with first live views of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on launch Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center—complete with NASA’s iconic “worm” logo that’s being resurrected for this mission.
- 11:15 a.m. – Iconic moments as Hurley and Behnken exit through the famous crew quarters doors about three hours before launch. That stirring sight will be followed by the astronauts climbing into a Tesla Model X for the nine-mile drive to Pad 39A.
- 3:22 p.m. — Countdown and launch of the Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon from Pad 39A.
- 4:09 p.m. — Crew Dragon phase burn.
- 4:55 p.m. — Far-field manual flight test.
- 6.30 p.m. – NASA/SpaceX Demo-2 post-launch news conference
The International Space Station (ISS).
When will the astronauts reach the ISS?
That’s due to take place 19 hours after launch, so Sunday, May 31, along with the hatch opening and welcoming ceremony on the ISS. It will all be broadcast live on NASA TV. Here’s the confirmed schedule:
- 10:29 a.m. – Docking of Crew Dragon with ISS
- 12:45 p.m. – Hatch open
- 1:05 p.m. – Welcome ceremony
- 3:15 p.m. – Post-arrival news conference at Johnson
How to see Crew Dragon from Europe
About 23 minutes after launch on Saturday, Crew Dragon will be visible in the skies over Europe. This calculated trajectory suggests that only those in eastern and southeastern Europe will be able to see Crew Dragon, with western Europe—including the UK—missing out because the Sun will not have set.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
