New goal in sight for SpaceX.
The American company is preparing to launch a Falcon 9 rocket from the east coast of the United States from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
On board the Dragon capsule, four astronauts who will join the International Space Station (ISS) to begin a long stay of around six months.
Called Crew-8, this crew rotation mission is the eighth that SpaceX has organized for the benefit of NASA, apart from test missions and tourist flights.
A similar operation, called Crew-9, is planned in the coming months, during next summer.
All systems are looking good for launch of Crew-8 tonight, and teams continue to keep an eye on weather, which is 40% favorable for liftoff → https://t.co/bJFjLCiTbK pic.twitter.com/B8zjRpQWDv
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) March 2, 2024
The crew is made up of three men and one woman: Russian Alexandre Grebionkine and Americans Matthew Dominick, Jeanette Epps and pilot Michael Barratt.
With the exception of the latter, who has already flown aboard a Soyuz and the Discovery shuttle, all will be making their first stay in space.
Russian-American partnership
The presence of a Russian cosmonaut is explained by the partnership between the United States and Russia in space, still relevant despite growing tensions linked to the war in Ukraine or, more recently, concerns about development of an anti-satellite weapon by Moscow, notes the Washington Post.
In 2022, in response to American sanctions, Russia even threatened to leave the partnership.
The departure of the Crew-8 mission is scheduled for this Saturday, March 2 at 11:16 p.m. (local time).
In mainland France, it will be 5:16 a.m. on Sunday March 3.
It will be possible to follow the event live on the SpaceX website, or on NASA's YouTube channel.
However, meteorologists at the Cape Canaveral space station estimate the chances of a successful launch at only 40%, citing possible precipitation as well as a potentially high risk of bad weather conditions in the ascent corridor, reports Florida Today.
“All systems are operational,” NASA said this Saturday afternoon.