So, half the job is done: at the end of May, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon became the first American-made spacecraft to launch with humans on board from American soil in close to a decade. It then delivered them to the International Space Station, where it docked and stayed since. But now comes another tricky part: the return to Earth.
The Crew Dragon launch in May proved that NASA’s commercial approach to space vehicles can work: have some private company develop and operate a spacecraft, and that clears the way for the agency to focus on grandiose plans for the Moon and Mars. But that can only work if the spacecraft performs equally as great both on launch and upon re-entry.
The departure from Earth came with its share of dangers, but luckily the two men on board, joint operations commander Robert Behnken and spacecraft commander Douglas Hurley, where safely able to reach the station. Now they’re getting ready to climb inside the Dragon once more, this time to face an entirely different set of dangers.
NASA said this week it targets 7:34 p.m. EDT on Saturday, August 1 for undocking, and a 2:42 p.m. Sunday August 2 splashdown at one of seven water landing zones in the Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Florida.
As usual during such high-profile operations, NASA plans to livestream all the steps that would hopefully lead to the safe recovery of the two astronauts, starting with a short farewell ceremony on the space station on August 1, going through departure preparations and ultimately the splashdown.
You’ll be able to see all these steps live on the NASA TV Youtube channel (attached below) and the agency’s website.
The landing of the Crew Dragon is one of two major events planned by NASA for this week. The other one is the launch of the Perseverance rover mission to Mars, which at the time of this writing is still scheduled for July 30.
Daniel loves writing (or so he claims), and he uses this skill to offer readers a "behind the scenes" look at the automotive industry. He also enjoys talking about space exploration and robots, because in his view the only way forward for humanity is away from this planet, in metal bodies. Full profile
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