UPDATE 5 POSTING — 2 LAUNCHES SAME DAY
On Wednesday, October 5 at 12:00 p.m. ET, 16:00 UTC, Falcon 9 launched Dragon’s fifth operational human spaceflight mission (Crew-5) to the International Space Station from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “Missions like Crew-5 are proof we are living through a golden era of commercial space exploration. It’s a new era powered by the spirit of partnership, fueled by scientific ingenuity, and inspired by the quest for new discoveries,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage landed on the Just Read the Instructions droneship. Dragon will autonomously dock with the space station on Thursday, October 6, at approximately 4:57 p.m. ET, 20:57 UTC.
During their time on the orbiting laboratory, the crew will conduct over 200 science experiments and technology demonstrations in areas such as human health and lunar fuel systems. Webcast coverage will resume approximately two hours prior to docking.
Then less than seven hours later, October 5, a successful Starlink launch from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
UPDATE 4 POSTING
SpaceX is now targeting Wednesday, October 5 for a Falcon 9 launch of 52 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The instantaneous launch window is at 4:10 p.m. PT (23:10 UTC).
The first stage booster supporting this mission previously launched NROL-87, NROL-85, SARah-1, and one Starlink mission. Following stage separation, the first stage landed on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship, stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
UPDATE 3 POSTING
SpaceX has scrubbed tonight’s launch attempt at Vandenberg Space Force Base, launch complex 4E9SLC-4E) with the Falcon 9 launch of 52 Starlink satellites to LEO tentatively rescheduled for tomorrow evening. However, it is reported that if NASA’s Crew-5 launch remains on schedule for Wednesday in Florida, teams would stand down from the Starlink launch attempt tomorrow in California.
The first stage booster supporting this mission previously launched NROL-87, NROL-85, SARah-1, and one Starlink mission
A report from T.S. Kelso on Twitter, who provides prelaunch tracking information from SpaceX, indicates a 24-hour delay to the mission to Tuesday, October 4, at 4:35 PM PDT (23:35 UTC).
This will mark SpaceX’s 44th launch of 2022–a launch every 6.27 days.
SpaceX and NASA are targeting no earlier than Wednesday, October 5 for Falcon 9’s launch of Dragon’s fifth operational human spaceflight mission (Crew-5) to the International Space Station from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The instantaneous launch window opens at 12:00 p.m. ET, 16:00 UTC, with a backup opportunity available on Thursday, October 6 at 11:38 a.m. ET, 15:38 UTC.
The Dragon spacecraft supporting this mission previously flew Crew-3 to and from the space station. Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage will land on the Just Read the Instructions droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
During their time on the orbiting laboratory, the crew will conduct over 200 science experiments and technology demonstrations in areas such as human health and lunar fuel systems.
UPDATE 2 POSTING
SpaceX is targeting Monday, October 3, for a Falcon 9 launch of 52 Starlink satellites to LEO from Space Launch Complex 4E (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
The first stage booster supporting this mission previously launched NROL-87, NROL-85, SARah-1, and one Starlink mission
Following stage separation, the first stage will land on the Of Course I Still Love You droneship, which will be stationed in the Pacific Ocean.
