Watch, Stream SpaceX Live Launch of Supply Mission to International Space Station
SpaceX and NASA are starting the month of May off with a bang, or more like an engine roar. The two have a rocket launch planned to send supplies to the International Space Station in one of SpaceX's Dragon capsules.
The launch was originally scheduled for Tuesday at 4:22 a.m. EDT but was pushed to early Wednesday morning. The launch was then pushed once again, scheduled for no earlier than 3:11 a.m. EDT Friday. A few hours before the launch was scheduled SpaceX tweeted that due to an electrical issue on the drone ship that would be used to recover the Falcon 9, the launch would be moved again. "Teams will also address the ground side helium leak before tomorrow's backup launch opportunity at 2:48 a.m. EDT, 6:48 UTC," said the tweet.
The most recent issue had to do with the Main Bus Switching Units on board that distributes the power on board the station to the eight power channels there. "Teams are working on a plan to robotically replace the failed unit and restore full power to the station system," said NASA.
The SpaceX rocket was set to carry more than 5,500 pounds of cargo containing supplies and research to the ISS for the crew members.
All of the cargo was expected to head to space on a Falcon 9 rocket and coverage was expected to begin Saturday around 2:30 a.m. EDT for the 2:48 a.m. launch. That coverage would be available on NASA TV and was also expected from SpaceX as well in its online live stream.
The post-launch news conference was scheduled for 4 a.m. EDT following the launch and the rendezvous coverage was expected Monday at 5:30 a.m. EDT with capture coverage happening around 9 a.m. EDT.
Watch SpaceX launch the Dragon craft to the ISS live:
This year was expected to be a big one for SpaceX after the company launched its Crew Dragon craft to the ISS as a practice run for a crewed mission later in the year.
Those plans for a crewed launch though were in limbo after an accident resulted in the crew craft burning up at Cape Canaveral last week, AP News reported. While nobody was injured in the fire, the craft was damaged significantly. It was undergoing testing on its abort thrusters when the fire occurred.
The new timeline for the Demo 2 launch and the crewed mission was unclear following the accident but it was likely to have caused a setback. "The NASA and SpaceX teams are assessing the anomaly that occurred today during a part of the Dragon Super Draco Static Fire Test at SpaceX Landing Zone 1 in Florida. The is why we test. We will learn, make the necessary adjustments and safely move forward with our Commercial Crew Program," said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine following the accident.
