NASA Prepares for Next Crew-7 Mission to International Space Station
NASA is gearing up to launch the next crew of astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) following the successful evaluation of SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft earlier this week. The space agency’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission is scheduled to lift off on Friday at 3:50 a.m. ET from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew capsule will be carried by SpaceX’s reliable Falcon 9 rocket.
The launch will be broadcast live on NASA Television, as well as the space agency’s website and app. Interested viewers can also tune in to the pre-launch coverage on the live feed, which will begin late night Thursday at 11:45 p.m.
The Crew-7 consists of international members, including NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov.
The crew will travel aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft named “Endurance,” which passed a flight readiness review on Wednesday. Addressing concerns about corrosion on the isolation valves of a cargo Dragon spacecraft, NASA officials confirmed that SpaceX had replaced some valve components, ensuring the spacecraft’s readiness for the mission.
According to Steve Stich, NASA’s commercial crew program manager, “Operations teams are not tracking any major issues with Falcon 9 or the Dragon spacecraft.” This affirmation was also echoed in a blog post by NASA.
“Endurance” is expected to dock with the ISS at 2:02 a.m. on Saturday, allowing the Crew-7 members to begin their six-month stay onboard the orbital lab.
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