NASA and SpaceX appointment On October 1, the Crew-13 manned spacecraft flew to the International Space Station. The launch is scheduled for 18:10 Moscow time from the SL40 launch pad at the Florida Space Launch Complex. Previously, the mission was originally scheduled to be launched on September 12, but preparations had to be suspended due to an oxidizer leak in the propulsion system of the Crew Dragon spacecraft. After the problem was resolved, experts conducted necessary inspections and released the flight.
Image source: NASA
The Crew-13 crew includes NASA Commander Astronaut Jessica Watkins, NASA Pilot Luke Delaney, Canadian Astronaut Joshua Kutrick and Russian Astronaut Sergey Teetyatnikov, all mission specialists. They will all replace the Crew-12 mission team that has been in orbit since mid-February this year. The two teams will work together and hand over matters for a few days, after which the Crew-12 crew, including Russian cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, will return to Earth.
To launch the Crew-13 mission, a combination of a Falcon 9 launch vehicle and a Crew Dragon spacecraft would traditionally be used. When launched on October 1, the ship should enter orbit and head to the International Space Station, where it is expected to dock with the American Harmony module’s forward port in about nine hours – already around 03:00 Moscow time on October 2. Prior to launch, experts from NASA and SpaceX will conduct final inspections of the condition of the rocket, spacecraft, ground infrastructure and the space station itself to confirm that all systems are ready for crewed flight.
Earlier this year, NASA planned to extend the time between expeditions to nine months, as Russia’s Roscosmos did, all to save money amid a budget deficit. However, back in the spring, NASA decided not to save on crewed missions in order to give as many astronauts as possible the chance to go into space before the International Space Station’s lifespan ends. The problem is that SpaceX is alone in delivering astronauts to the International Space Station, while Boeing has failed to meet its obligations to the agency. Since the Crew Dragon spacecraft is reusable and definitely not designed for actual loading, it seems likely that malfunction events will occur with increasing frequency.
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