A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's
Crew Dragon spacecraft is launched from Launch Complex 39A on NASA’s
SpaceX Demo-2 mission to the International Space Station with NASA
astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard, Saturday, May 30,
2020, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Demo-2 mission is
the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft
and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the
agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The test flight serves as an
end-to-end demonstration of SpaceX’s crew transportation system. Behnken
and Hurley launched at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30, from Launch
Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human spaceflight
is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on an American
rocket from American soil to low-Earth orbit for the first time since
the conclusion of the Space Shuttle Program in 2011.
Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls
For the first time in history, NASA astronauts have launched from
American soil in a commercially built and operated American crew
spacecraft on its way to the International Space Station. The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley
lifted off at 3:22 p.m. EDT Saturday on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket
from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
“Today a new era in human spaceflight begins as we once again
launched American astronauts on American rockets from American soil on
their way to the International Space Station, our national lab orbiting
Earth,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “I thank and
congratulate Bob Behnken, Doug Hurley, and the SpaceX and NASA teams for
this significant achievement for the United States. The launch of this
commercial space system designed for humans is a phenomenal
demonstration of American excellence and is an important step on our
path to expand human exploration to the Moon and Mars.”
Known as NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2, the mission is an end-to-end test
flight to validate the SpaceX crew transportation system, including
launch, in-orbit, docking and landing operations. This is SpaceX’s
second spaceflight test of its Crew Dragon and its first test with
astronauts aboard, which will pave the way for its certification for
regular crew flights to the station as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
"This is a dream come true for me and everyone at SpaceX,” said Elon
Musk, chief engineer at SpaceX. “It is the culmination of an incredible
amount of work by the SpaceX team, by NASA and by a number of other
partners in the process of making this happen. You can look at this as
the results of a hundred thousand people roughly when you add up all the
suppliers and everyone working incredibly hard to make this day
happen.”
The program demonstrates NASA’s commitment to investing in commercial
companies through public-private partnerships and builds on the success
of American companies, including SpaceX, already delivering cargo to
the space station.
President Donald Trump, right, Vice President Mike
Pence, and Second Lady Karen Pence watch the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9
rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on NASA’s SpaceX
Demo-2 mission with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley
onboard, Saturday, May 30, 2020, from the balcony of Operations Support
Building II at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s SpaceX
Demo-2 mission is the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew
Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station
as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The test flight serves
as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceX’s crew transportation system.
Behnken and Hurley launched at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30, from
Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human
spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on
an American rocket from American soil to low-Earth orbit for the first
time since the conclusion of the Space Shuttle Program in 2011.
Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls
“It’s difficult to put into words how proud I am of the people who
got us here today,” said Kathy Lueders, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
manager. “When I think about all of the challenges overcome – from
design and testing, to paper reviews, to working from home during a
pandemic and balancing family demands with this critical mission – I am
simply amazed at what the NASA and SpaceX teams have accomplished
together. This is just the beginning; I will be watching with great
anticipation as Bob and Doug get ready to dock to the space station
tomorrow, and through every phase of this historic mission.”
SpaceX controlled the launch of the Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy’s
Launch Control Center Firing Room 4, the former space shuttle control
room, which SpaceX has leased as its primary launch control center. As
Crew Dragon ascended into space, SpaceX commanded the spacecraft from
its mission control center in Hawthorne, California. NASA teams are
monitoring space station operations throughout the flight from Mission
Control Center at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to dock to the space
station at 10:29 a.m. Sunday, May 31. NASA Television and the agency’s website
are providing ongoing live coverage of the Crew Dragon’s trip to the
orbiting laboratory. Behnken and Hurley will work with SpaceX mission
control to verify the spacecraft is performing as intended by testing
the environmental control system, the displays and control system, and
by maneuvering the thrusters, among other things. The first docking
maneuver began Saturday, May 30, at 4:09 p.m., and the spacecraft will
begin its close approach to the station at about 8:27 a.m. Sunday, May
31. Crew Dragon is designed to dock autonomously, but the crews onboard
the spacecraft and the space station will diligently monitor the
performance of the spacecraft as it approaches and docks to the forward
port of the station’s Harmony module.
After successfully docking, the crew will be welcomed aboard the
International Space Station, where they will become members of the Expedition 63 crew, which currently includes NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy.
NASA will continue live coverage through hatch opening and the crew
welcoming ceremony. The crew will perform tests on Crew Dragon in
addition to conducting research and other tasks with the space station
crew.
Demo-2 Astronauts
NASA astronauts Robert Behnken, foreground, and
Douglas Hurley, wearing SpaceX spacesuits, are seen as they depart the
Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building for Launch Complex
39A to board the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft for the Demo-2 mission
launch, Saturday, May 30, 2020, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in
Florida. NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 mission is the first launch with
astronauts of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to
the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew
Program. The test flight serves as an end-to-end demonstration of
SpaceX’s crew ransportation system. Behnken and Hurley are scheduled to
launch at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30, from Launch Complex 39A at
the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human spaceflight is set to begin
as American astronauts once again launch on an American rocket from
American soil to low-Earth orbit for the first time since the conclusion
of the Space Shuttle Program in 2011.
Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls
Behnken is the joint operations commander for the mission,
responsible for activities such as rendezvous, docking and undocking, as
well as Demo-2 activities while the spacecraft is docked to the space
station. He was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2000 and has completed
two space shuttle flights. Behnken flew STS-123 in March 2008 and
STS-130 in February 2010, performing three spacewalks during each
mission. Born in St. Anne, Missouri, he has bachelor’s degrees in
physics and mechanical engineering from Washington University in St.
Louis and earned a master’s and doctorate in mechanical engineering from
the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. Before joining
NASA, he was a flight test engineer with the U.S. Air Force.
NASA astronaut Douglas Hurley waves as he and
fellow crew member Robert Behnken depart the Neil A. Armstrong
Operations and Checkout Building for Launch Complex 39A to board the
SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft for the Demo-2 mission launch, Saturday,
May 30, 2020, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s SpaceX
Demo-2 mission is the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew
Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station
as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The test flight serves
as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceX’s crew transportation system.
Behnken and Hurley are scheduled to launch at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday,
May 30, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era
of human spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again
launch on an American rocket from American soil to low-Earth orbit for
the first time since the conclusion of the Space Shuttle Program in
2011.
Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls
Hurley is the spacecraft commander for Demo-2, responsible for
activities such as launch, landing and recovery. He was selected as an
astronaut in 2000 and has completed two spaceflights. Hurley served as
pilot and lead robotics operator for both STS‐127 in July 2009 and
STS‐135, the final space shuttle mission, in July 2011. The New York
native was born in Endicott but considers Apalachin his hometown. He
holds a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Tulane
University in New Orleans and graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot
School in Patuxent River, Maryland. Before joining NASA, he was a
fighter pilot and test pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Mission Objectives
The Demo-2 mission is the final major test before NASA’s Commercial
Crew Program certifies Crew Dragon for operational, long-duration
missions to the space station. As SpaceX’s final flight test, it will
validate all aspects of its crew transportation system, including the
Crew Dragon spacecraft, spacesuits, Falcon 9 launch vehicle, launch pad
39A and operations capabilities.
While en route to the station, Behnken and Hurley will take control
of Crew Dragon for two manual flight tests, demonstrating their ability
to control the spacecraft should an issue with the spacecraft’s
automated flight arise. On Saturday, May 30, while the spacecraft is
coasting, the crew will test its roll, pitch and yaw. When Crew Dragon
is about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) below the station and moving around to
the docking axis, the crew will conduct manual in-orbit demonstrations
of the control system in the event it were needed. After pausing,
rendezvous will resume and mission managers will make a final decision
about whether to proceed to docking as Crew Dragon approaches 20 meters
(66 feet).
For operational missions, Crew Dragon will be able to launch as many
as four crew members at a time and carry more than 220 pounds of cargo,
allowing for an increased number crew members aboard the space station
and increasing the time dedicated to research in the unique microgravity environment, as well as returning more science back to Earth.
The Crew Dragon being used for this flight test can stay in orbit
about 110 days, and the specific mission duration will be determined
once on station based on the readiness of the next commercial crew
launch. The operational Crew Dragon spacecraft will be capable of
staying in orbit for at least 210 days as a NASA requirement.
At the conclusion of the mission, Behnken and Hurley will board Crew
Dragon, which will then autonomously undock, depart the space station,
and re-enter Earth’s atmosphere. Upon splashdown off Florida’s Atlantic
coast, the crew will be picked up by the SpaceX recovery ship and
returned to the dock at Cape Canaveral.
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is working with SpaceX and Boeing to
design, build, test and operate safe, reliable and cost-effective human
transportation systems to low-Earth orbit. Both companies are focused on
test missions, including abort system demonstrations and crew flight
tests, ahead of regularly flying crew missions to the space station.
Both companies’ crewed flights will be the first times in history NASA
has sent astronauts to space on systems owned, built, tested and
operated by private companies.
Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Crew program at:
