SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission will launch to the Worldwide House Station with solely NASA’s Nick Hague and Roscosmos’ Aleksandr Gorbunov onboard, in response to an replace on Friday. Crew-9 will launch “no earlier” than September twenty fourth, with plans to deliver delayed Starliner astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams again to Earth subsequent February.
NASA says the opposite two US astronauts initially chosen for the mission, Zena Cardman and Stephanie Wilson, might be eligible for reassignment. The company doesn’t specify why it cut up the crew up. Regardless of serving as a experience for Starliner’s astronauts, the 2 Crew-9 members will perform their unique aim of performing analysis on the ISS throughout their keep.
“Whereas we’ve modified crew earlier than for a wide range of causes, downsizing crew for this flight was one other powerful resolution to regulate to on condition that the crew has educated as a crew of 4,” NASA chief astronaut Joe Acaba mentioned in a press release. “I’ve the utmost confidence in all our crew, who’ve been wonderful all through coaching for the mission.”
In the meantime, Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft will autonomously undock from the ISS on September sixth at 6:04PM. It received’t have anybody onboard, however groups on the bottom might be able to “remotely command the spacecraft” if wanted. The spacecraft is about to land in New Mexico’s White Sands House Harbor round six hours later.
