SpaceX Crew-9 lifts off with Nick, Aleksandr and a ‘furry friend’ Aurora, Dragon to offer Sunita Williams ride back home

SpaceX Crew-9 mission launched into the space with Commander Nick Hague, Mission Specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov and a 'furry friend' Aurora on Saturday. The SpaceX Crew 9 Dragon craft will offer Sunita Williams a ride back home in February next year.

Akriti Anand
Updated29 Sep 2024, 06:50 AM IST
SpaceX Crew-9 NASA Astronaut Nick Hague (Mission Commander) wearing SpaceX spacesuits, departs from the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Control Building at Kennedy Space Center for Space Launch Complex 40 September 28, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
SpaceX Crew-9 NASA Astronaut Nick Hague (Mission Commander) wearing SpaceX spacesuits, departs from the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Control Building at Kennedy Space Center for Space Launch Complex 40 September 28, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Florida. (Getty Images via AFP)

NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 mission successfully launched from Space Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Saturday. Crew 9, the first human spaceflight mission to launch from pad 40, is now en route to the International Space Station.

SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft separated from the Falcon 9 rocket in the second stage and now is flying on its own.

Also Read | SpaceX Crew-9 launch: NASA recalls ’very unusual problem’ with Dragon spacecraft

How long will it take to reach the ISS? "It is expected to take 28.5 hours for the spacecraft to autonomously dock to the space station at 5:30 p.m. EDT Sunday, September 29, while traveling 17,000 mph orbiting the Earth," NASA said in a statement on Saturday. This marks the first time a human spaceflight mission launched from the pad 40.

First two crewmembers to sign the White Room: Meanwhile, Crew-9's Commander Nick Hague and Mission Specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov became the first two crewmembers to sign the White Room at the end of the crew access arm at pad 40.

NASA said the White Room is an area at the end of the crew access arm that connects to the spacecraft – the term dates to the Gemini program and the white paint used on the room.

Also Read | Nick & Aleksandr: Meet SpaceX Crew-9 team who’ll fly back with Sunita Williams

Nick, Aleksandr and a 'furry friend' Aurora? The Crew-9 mission launched with NASA astronaut and commander Nick Hague, Roscosmos cosmonaut and mission specialist Aleksandr Gorbunov and their “furry friend” Aurora on board.

During his spaceflight on Saturday, Hague revealed the small plush baby falcon in the crew cabin of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft "Freedom."

That "furry friend" is a "Zero-G [Gravity] indicator". NASA describes a Zero gravity indicators as "small items carried aboard spacecraft that provide a visual indicator when a spacecraft has reached the weightlessness of microgravity". It's a tradition to bring a small object along by crews to serve as a “zero gravity indicator”. This time, Hague reused the one he had on his previous flights.

Also Read | Countdown begins: NASA-SpaceX Crew-9 mission to launch ‘without pilot’ but…

"I just so happen to have a furry friend with me", Nick said in space-to-ground communication as he reached the microgravity. “We got a Falcon on board...This one’s a multi-flyer, though, was on my first flight with Aleksey and I, and with Aleskey and I and Christina, and now me and Alex, so say hello to Aurora,” he added.

A view from a rear camera inside Crew Dragon Freedom after reaching orbit with Nick Hague on the left, Aleksandr Gorbunov on the right, and the white furry zero-g indicator, Aurora (a falcon), in the center.

Dragon to offer Sunita Williams ride back home: Nick and Aleksandr launched aboard a Falcon 9 rocket and SpaceX Dragon ‘Endurance’ spacecraft. NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who reached the ISS on Boeing's Starliner, will return with Nick and Aleksandr on the SpaceX craft in February 2025.

Also Read | NASA to stream livestream launch of SpaceX mission to ’rescue’ Sunita Williams

By the time Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore return, the pair will have logged more than eight months in space. They expected to be gone just a week when they signed up for Boeing’s first astronaut flight that launched in June. However, technical issues with Starliner prompted NASA to bring back the Boeing spacecraft without its crew.

Also Read | Why is Sunita Williams in space? From launch to much-awaited return: Your guide
Falcon 9 launches Crew-9, the first human spaceflight mission to launch from pad 40 in Florida

Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov will join Expedition 72 for a five-month stay aboard the orbiting laboratory. Crew-9 will conduct over 200 scientific and technology demonstrations during their time on the space station, SpaceX said in a post on X.

"Dragon missions like Crew-9 and Polaris Dawn are important steps in building our future in space, enabling discoveries that can inform long-duration spaceflight missions as life becomes multiplanetary," Elon Musk's company added.

In total, Hague and Gorbunov will spend some five months on the ISS; Wilmore and Williams, eight months.

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First Published:29 Sep 2024, 06:50 AM IST
Business NewsScienceNewsSpaceX Crew-9 lifts off with Nick, Aleksandr and a ‘furry friend’ Aurora, Dragon to offer Sunita Williams ride back home

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