Space Station – Page 18 – Spaceflight Now

First crew of private astronauts welcomed aboard International Space Station

April 9, 2022 Stephen Clark

A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked at the International Space Station on Saturday with four private astronauts, beginning a planned stay of at least eight days — and maybe longer — while becoming the first mission with an all-commercial crew to visit the orbiting research complex.

Live coverage: SpaceX crew capsule docks with space station

April 9, 2022 Stephen Clark

Less than a day after launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, four commercial space fliers arrived Saturday at the International Space Station, becoming the first all-private crew to visit the orbiting research complex. Docking of SpaceX’s Dragon Endeavour spacecraft with the station occurred at 8:29 a.m. EDT (1229 GMT).

Live coverage: Four private astronauts launch to International Space Station

April 8, 2022 Stephen Clark

Four private citizens rode into orbit Friday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft, taking aim on the International Space Station on the first all-commercial mission to visit the research complex. Liftoff from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida occurred at 11:17 a.m. EDT (1517 GMT).

SpaceX ready for launch of first all-commercial crew to space station

April 7, 2022 William Harwood

SpaceX and a Houston company are gearing up to launch four private citizens Friday on the first NASA-sanctioned, fully commercial flight to the International Space Station, a key step in a government push to encourage private-sector development on the high frontier.

NASA’s SLS moon rocket, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 share the scene at Kennedy Space Center

April 6, 2022 Stephen Clark

NASA’s Artemis 1 moon rocket and SpaceX’s Falcon 9 shared the scene Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center — the first time since 2009 that rockets have stood on both pads at Launch Complex 39.

Falcon 9 rocket test-fired for Axiom commercial crew mission

April 6, 2022 Stephen Clark

SpaceX rolled a Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule to their launch pad Tuesday and test-fired the booster’s engines Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center, setting up for launch Friday of four private space fliers on a 10-day mission to the International Space Station.

NASA bumps Artemis countdown rehearsal until after Axiom crew launch

April 5, 2022 Stephen Clark

NASA officials said Tuesday they are standing down from a cryogenic loading test on the agency’s Space Launch System moon rocket until after the launch of a commercial crew mission from a neighboring pad at the Kennedy Space Center. A countdown test Monday was delayed by what NASA managers characterized as minor issues, including a liquid oxygen temperature concern and a manual valve that was left in the wrong configuration before teams evacuated the SLS launch pad.

NASA astronaut back on Earth after record-setting flight

March 30, 2022 William Harwood

NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei joined two Russian cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz spacecraft, undocked from the International Space Station and plunged back to Earth Wednesday, landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan to close out a U.S.-record 355-day stay in space.

Live coverage: NASA astronaut returning home today with two Russian cosmonauts

March 30, 2022 Stephen Clark

NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, wrapping up nearly one year in orbit, rode a Russian Soyuz spaceship back to Earth on Wednesday with Russian commander Anton Shkaplerov and flight engineer Pyotr Dubrov. The crew returned home from the International Space Station and landed in Kazakhstan at 7:28 a.m. EDT (1128 GMT).

NASA astronaut, two cosmonauts set for Wednesday return to Earth

March 29, 2022 William Harwood

NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, launched by Russia to the International Space Station aboard a Soyuz spacecraft last April, returns this week to a world torn by war in Ukraine and escalating superpower tension as he closes out a 355-day stay in orbit, the longest single flight by a U.S. astronaut.