SpaceX and NASA are now a short time away from launching four more astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), with all eyes now on the weather to see if it’s going to play ball.
The mission team is currently targeting 12:09 p.m. ET on Thursday, July 31, for the liftoff from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
At the moment, it’s looking like the four Crew-11 astronauts will be able to get away on time, barring any last-minute technical hitch. According to the 45th Weather Squadron, which gives detailed assessments for air and space operations in the U.S., Thursday’s mission from Kennedy has an 85% chance of happening on time.
But that means there’s also a 15% chance of a delay, which is down to a possible isolated shower or thunderstorm near the launch window, the 45th Weather Squadron said in its report. AccuWeather says it’ll be partly cloudy and humid on Thursday.
It’s not just the mission team watching the weather, as many people are also planning to head to the Space Coast to see the first crewed launch since the Ax-4 flight on June 25. NASA and SpaceX are also livestreaming the launch on their various social channels, including X and YouTube. For full details on how to watch, Digital Trends has all you need to know.
Crew-11 comprises NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, along with Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Platonov. They’ll spend about six months living and working on the space station as it orbits Earth at a speed of around 17,500 mph.
Fincke, the most experienced member of the crew, said earlier this week: “I’m personally looking forward to going back up to the space station — I helped build it and now I’m getting to see it in its full maturity.”
The American astronaut first went to orbit in 2004, with his last mission taking place in 2011. Meanwhile, it’ll be the first spaceflight for Cardman and Platonov, and the second for Yui.
