What's Up? The Space Place

Hey Space Placers! BIG NEWS! NASA and Boeing recently announced that December 17, 2019, will be the anticipated launch date for Orbital Flight Test -1 of Boeing's CST 100 Starliner. It will be an uncrewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS). This is a critical step forward for NASA's Commercial Crew Program which was designed to return human spaceflight capability to NASA via commercial partners Boeing and SpaceX/ Boeing's Orbital Flight Test - 1 CST 100 Starliner Being mated to its Service Module. Credit: Boeing via  Ars Technica.com Both Boeing and SpaceX are way behind schedule in returning American human spaceflight capability to NASA since the Space Shuttle was retired in 2011. A successful mission of Starliner would be a huge step forward. I will be at sea in the South Pacific when the planned launch date occurs but I will be watching! Sky Guy in VA

Hey Space Placers! On March 2, at 2:29 a.m. EST, SpaceX will try to launch its Crew Dragon spacecraft using a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center's Pad 39A. CREDIT: SpaceX It will be uncrewed and launched to dock with the International Space Station on March 3rd. The mission, Demo-1, is a crucial test for NASA's Commercial Crew Program . Live coverage will be provided by NASA starting at 2:00 a.m. If Demo-1 proves successful the next mission should be with a NASA crew later this year. The other Commercial Crew Partner, Boeing and its CST 100 Starliner, is also expected to conduct an uncrewed test flight in 2019. If either is successful with a crewed launch it would mark the first time in EIGHT YEARS that NASA has launched a crew from Kennedy Space Center. No longer will the Russians have the only crew rated spacecraft in the world. Let's light this candle! Sky Guy in VA