Watch SpaceX launch the Crew-9 astronaut mission to the ISS today

Watch Live! SpaceX brings Crew-9 astronauts to the space station – YouTube

Keep looking

SpaceX will send two astronauts on a rescue mission of sorts today (September 28), and you can watch it live.

Crew-9, the ninth operational SpaceX astronaut flight to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA, is scheduled to launch today at 1:17 p.m. EDT (1717 GMT) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

You can watch the event live here on Space.com via NASA+, formerly NASA Television. Coverage begins at 9:10 a.m. EDT (1310 GMT). Follow our Crew 9 mission updates page for live launch updates.

The two astronauts on board are Commander Nick Hague, who works at NASA and the US Space Force, and mission specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov from the Russian space agency Roscosmos.

Assuming today's launch goes on time, Hague and Gorbunov are scheduled to dock with the ISS at 5:30 p.m. EDT (22:30 GMT) on Sunday (September 29), with coverage on NASA+ beginning two hours earlier. The hatch opening between the station and Dragon will occur approximately at 7:15 p.m. EDT (2315 GMT).

Related: SpaceX's Crew 9 astronaut flight for NASA launches this week. Here's how it became a rescue mission

On such missions, SpaceX Crew Dragon capsules typically carry four people to the ISS. But Crew-9 leaves two seats open so the Dragon can bring home two NASA astronauts – Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams – who reached the orbiting laboratory in June on the Boeing Starliner capsule's first crewed mission. However, Starliner returned to Earth unmanned on September 7 after experiencing engine problems in orbit.

NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 crew members, NASA astronaut Nick Hague (left) and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, participate in a countdown dress rehearsal in the crew suit room of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency's Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, in Florida to prepare for the upcoming launch of Crew-9.

NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 crew members, NASA astronaut Nick Hague (left) and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. (Image credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett)

Therefore, Crew-9's Dragon was pressed into service to bring the Starliner duo home in February 2025. A crew change occurred in August, with newcomer Zena Cardman and three-time space shuttle astronaut Stephanie Wilson removed from Crew-9 to make room for Williams and Wilmore. (Wilson and Cardman are eligible for future missions.)

In the unlikely event that the ISS requires an emergency evacuation before Crew-9 arrives, there is one more backup for Williams and Wilmore: They will use the Crew-8 Dragon capsule, which will remain docked at the station (and briefly will depart after Crew-9). comes). With four astronauts already assigned to Crew 8 seats, Wilmore and Williams would use temporary seats in the cargo area should this scenario occur.

Once Crew-9 docks, Williams and Wilmore's emergency evacuation plans will focus on the use of this spacecraft.

Watch SpaceX launch the Crew-9 astronaut mission to the ISS today

You may also like...

Recent Posts

Watch SpaceX launch the Crew-9 astronaut mission to the ISS today

You may also like...

86-year-old woman pleads guilty in Liliha arson case

Ocala shooting trial: Defense rests

The Waffle Houses in Tallahassee, Crawfordville closed as Helene approached

Recent Posts