NASA will discuss the SpaceX Crew-2 mission, carrying astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), during conferences on March 1, the agency reported on Tuesday. The mission is scheduled to launch no earlier than April 20 from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Fl.
SpaceX’s Crew-2 mission will carry astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur of NASA, Akihiko Hoshide of JAXA and ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket to the space station.
Kimbrough is commander of the Crew Dragon spacecraft and the Crew-2 mission. He is responsible for all phases of flight, from launch to re-entry. He also will serve as an Expedition 65 flight engineer aboard the station.
McArthur is the pilot of the Crew Dragon spacecraft and second-in-command for the mission. McArthur is responsible for spacecraft systems and performance. She also will be a long-duration space station crew member, making her first trip to the space station.
Hoshide is a mission specialist for Crew-2, where he will collaborate with the commander and pilot to monitor the vehicle during the dynamic launch and re-entry phases of flight. Once aboard the station, Hoshide will become a flight engineer for Expedition 65.
Pesquet will also be a mission specialist for Crew-2, working with the commander and pilot to monitor the vehicle during the dynamic launch and re-entry phases of flight. Pesquet also will become a long-duration crew member aboard the space station.
In June 2020, NASA astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft arrived at the ISS as part of the manned Demo-2 test flight mission. Hurley and Behnken named their spacecraft “Endeavour” after they reached orbit and joined the Expedition 63 crew after they docked to the orbiting laboratory’s Harmony module.
The Crew Dragon spacecraft for Demo-2 launched from Kennedy Space Center aboard a Falcon 9 rocket as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Demo-2 serves as SpaceX’s final test flight to validate the spacecraft, launch vehicle, spacesuits and other components of its crew transportation system.
Crew Dragon is designed to launch up to four astronauts and transport more than 220 pounds of cargo in support of operational missions. The crew will carry out tests to ensure that the spacecraft can remain docked at the ISS for up to 210 days in future missions, in addition to performing research and other tasks at the space station.