Q&A with Keith Gendreau, principal investigator of the first X-ray space communications experiment (members only)

NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexandr Gorbunov arrived in Florida on Saturday afternoon ahead of their final launch preparations. A flight readiness review occurred on Monday, Sept. 23.

A 29-year-old cancer survivor, now a physician’s assistant at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, will blast off aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule later this year for a flight dedicated to raising money for the Memphis medical center. It will be the first orbital spaceflight with no professional astronauts on board.

The second fully commercial astronaut flight to the International Space Station will have just two opportunities to launch Sunday and Monday, or else wait until after an upcoming SpaceX resupply mission next month to deliver a new set of high-priority solar arrays to the complex.