International Space Station – Spaceflight Now

Space station to receive new commercial airlock from Nanoracks

December 4, 2020

A privately-funded airlock from Nanoracks will head for the International Space Station this weekend in the trunk of a SpaceX Cargo Dragon capsule, adding to the orbiting lab’s capacity for scientific experiments in another milestone for commercial space development.

Live coverage: Falcon 9 rocket counting down to Cargo Dragon launch

December 3, 2020

SpaceX has rolled out a Falcon 9 rocket to pad 39A for the first launch of an upgraded version of the company’s Dragon cargo capsule for the International Space Station. A test-firing was accomplished Thursday ahead of a scheduled launch Saturday at 11:39 a.m. EST (1639 GMT), weather permitting.

Crew-rated SpaceX booster returns to Cape Canaveral with a lean

November 20, 2020

The Falcon 9 booster that launched four astronauts toward orbit last weekend arrived back on Florida’s Space Coast Thursday aboard a SpaceX drone ship, sailing into Port Canaveral with a lean but otherwise in seemingly good shape after it apparently slid across the ship’s deck in high winds and rough seas. Assuming post-flight inspections reveal no major issues, SpaceX aims to reuse the booster to launch the next Crew Dragon mission in 2021.

Photos: Four astronauts launch aboard SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket

November 20, 2020

These images show the liftoff of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Resilience spacecraft on top of a 215-foot-tall Falcon 9 rocket from pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying four astronauts on an expedition to the International Space Station.

Spacewalkers prep for arrival of new Russian module

November 18, 2020

Two Russian cosmonauts used the International Space Station’s Poisk docking compartment as an airlock for the first time Wednesday in a six-hour 48-minute spacewalk to begin preparing the nearly identical Pirs module for removal next year. A new laboratory module will be parked in its place later.

Crew Dragon docking gives space station its first long-term crew of seven

November 17, 2020

SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Resilience spacecraft glided to a smooth automated docking Monday night at the International Space Station, delivering four astronauts to join the three-person crew already on-board, boosting the size of the lab’s long-duration crew to seven for the first time.

Astronauts fly with SpaceX in landmark launch for commercial spaceflight

November 16, 2020

A Crew Dragon capsule ferried four astronauts into space Sunday night after a rumbling departure from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, setting off on a 27-hour pursuit of the International Space Station on SpaceX’s first operational crew rotation flight to the orbiting outpost.

NASA officials hope to fly Russian cosmonaut on Crew Dragon next year

November 15, 2020

NASA has submitted a draft agreement for government approval that would allow Russian cosmonauts to begin flying to the International Space Station on U.S. crew capsules next year in a no-funds exchanged arrangement with Russia’s space agency. In return, Russia will continue launching U.S. and international astronauts on Soyuz missions.

Live coverage: SpaceX crew capsule docks with space station

November 15, 2020

Four astronauts flying on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon “Resilience” spacecraft reached the International Space Station late Monday, one day after launching from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The capsule autonomously docked with the space station at 11:01 p.m. EST Monday (0401 GMT Tuesday).

Veteran Japanese astronaut to become SpaceX’s first international passenger

November 14, 2020

Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi has traveled to the International Space Station on a space shuttle and a Russian capsule. He’s now gearing up to launch on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spaceship, becoming only the third person to launch from Earth into orbit on three different types of spacecraft.