NASA Commercial Crew Program announced that SpaceX’s Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) has been delayed due to unfavorable weather conditions. The Crew-3 mission is SpaceX’s third operational crewed flight under the agency's program that was previously scheduled to lift off on Halloween day at 2:21 a.m. EDT, “NASA and SpaceX now are targeting 1:10 a.m. EDT Wednesday, November 3, for the agency’s Crew-3 launch to the International Space Station due to a large storm system meandering across the Ohio Valley and through northeastern United States this weekend, elevating winds and waves in the Atlantic Ocean along the Crew Dragon flight path for the October 31 launch attempt,” agency representatives announced in a press release. “Weather conditions along the ascent corridor are expected to improve for a November 3 launch attempt.”
If they do launch on Wednesday, Crew Dragon Endurance would arrive at the orbiting laboratory on the same day at around 11:00 p.m. EDT. The United States Space Force 45th Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral forecast a 80% chance of favorable weather conditions in the region for the next planned launch date. The previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket is already vertical at Launch Complex-39A at the Kennedy Space Center awaiting liftoff. Crew-3 NASA astronauts Mission Commander Raja Chari, Pilot Tom Marshburn, and Mission Specialist Kayla Barron, alongside European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer are under quarantine and ready for launch day. They went over launch day activities during a dress rehearsal that took place on Thursday night.
It will be the first trip to outer space for Chari, Maurer, and Barron. They are very excited to see Earth from orbit and experience microgravity for the very first time. Marshburn is a veteran astronaut, he has flown two times to outer space during the Space Shuttle STS-127 mission in 2009 and the ISS Expedition 34/35 in 2013. He is a professional medical doctor who looks forward to conducting more health research in zero gravity environment.
Once at the ISS Lab, Crew Dragon Endurance will remain docked to the ISS Harmony module for a long-duration mission of 6 months. The astronauts will conduct hundreds of science experiments and research. The spacecraft is packed with over 400 pounds of supplies, hardware, and materials needed to conduct various scientific experiments. NASA TV will broadcast the Crew-3 mission Live. You can watch all events leading to launch day in the video linked below, courtesy of NASA (Schedule is in Eastern Time).
Edit: NASA Astronaut Tom Marshburn has flown Twice to outer space. Crew-3 will be his third spaceflight.
NASA TV Live Broadcast Schedule
Tuesday, Nov. 2
- 8:45 p.m. – NASA Television launch coverage begins. NASA will have continuous coverage, including launch, docking, hatch open, and welcome ceremony.
Wednesday, Nov. 3
1:10 a.m. – Launch
NASA TV coverage continues through docking, arrival, and the welcome ceremony. In lieu of a postlaunch news conference, NASA leadership will provide comments during the broadcast.
11 p.m. – Docking
Thursday, Nov. 4
- 12:35 a.m. – Hatch Opening
- 1:10 a.m. – Welcoming Ceremony
WATCH IT LIVE!
Featured Images Source: NASA & SpaceX
About the Author
Evelyn Janeidy Arevalo
Evelyn J. Arevalo joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover news as a Space Journalist and SpaceX Starbase Texas Correspondent. Evelyn is specialized in rocketry and space exploration. The main topics she covers are SpaceX and NASA.
