SpaceX and NASA aim for historic launch

NASA and SpaceX will do this all over again in three days.

The next launch attempt is slated for Saturday, May 30, at 3:22 p.m. ET.

Until then, astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley will head back to quarantine.

The astronauts were just informed that this launch is scrubbed for today.

The weather just wouldn’t clear up enough to permit liftoff.

NASA and SpaceX will try again on May 30.

Now begins the “scrub sequence” — they’ll unload the rocket’s propellant. After that, the crew access arm will swing back around and the astronauts will be able to disembark.

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We’re less than a hour away from liftoff. And that means it’s time to load the rocket up with fuel.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will be loaded with RP-1, or “Rocket Propellant 1,” and “LOX” — or “liquid oxygen.”

The oxygen is made so cold that it turns liquid, and after LOX loading, viewers will be able to see what looks like steam or smoke emanating from the rocket. That’s just the super-chilled oxygen boiling off the side of the rocket as the surrounding air heats some of the excess LOX.

Launch officials are still keeping a close eye on the weather. Right now, it’s not looking great. But NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine shared an optimistic tweet as fueling began:

Earlier this week, a group of NASA personnel gathered to take a picture with the Crew Dragon spacecraft and rocket on the launch pad. And it wasn’t just for the memories: It’s something they do before every mission and there’s definitely some superstition around it.

And after launch, they’ll dig in to bowls of chili. In the Space Shuttle days, they used to eat just beans. But, as one NASA official told CNN Business, some traditions are being tweaked for this new era of human spaceflight.

Over at the weather squadron, which is part of the military’s 45th Space Wing, no one is allowed to wear red socks — the color code for inclement weather.

Food is also involved: “For every launch, about 30 minutes prior, we will bring out a big box of popcorn, and everyone will have a handful.”

The reason? The weather group liked their popcorn. But before the fatal destruction of Space Shuttle Columbia in 2003, no one made a batch. So they resolved never to skip the popcorn again.

SpaceX began what’s called the “Go/No-go poll” now that we’re about 45 minutes away from liftoff.

Right now, the weather is still a bit rough, and it’s not clear if conditions will ultimately look good enough to light the engine when the countdown clock runs out.

SpaceX decided to move forward with fueling the rocket. More than 1 million pounds of propellant will be funneled into the Falcon 9 over the next half hour. Meanwhile, the astronauts are still sitting tight inside the Crew Dragon capsule, which sits atop the rocket.

SpaceX’s John Insprucker said the latest update on weather from the 45th Space Wing is “red.” That’s the code for weather too severe to permit liftoff.

It’s still possible things will clear up before the liftoff time of 4:33 pm ET.

SpaceX put a couple pieces of special cargo on board with the astronauts for today’s launch.

First, a piece of art made of gold, brass and aluminum — meant to signify how far the space program has come and how far humanity has to go in exploring the cosmos.

Second is a mosaic of more than 100,000 photographs of 2020 graduates from all over the world. The composite image makes up an image of planet Earth.

To make sure this rocket makes it safely into Earth’s orbit, SpaceX and NASA will need a bit of luck when it comes to Mother Nature.

The 45th Space Wing, an arm of the US military, is constantly monitoring the weather — both at the launch pad and across a broad stretch of the Atlantic Ocean.

The team uses all sorts of instruments, including radars and weather balloons, to ensure that the rocket will have a smooth ride all the way through the upper atmosphere. And conditions are monitored at sea as well: If the rocket misfires and SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule needs to use its emergency abort system to jettison the astronauts to safety, they’ll land in the ocean. And that means officials must ensure that landing won’t be made more dangerous by a severe storm or rough waves, so they scan a massive stretch of the Atlantic Ocean all the way to the coast of Ireland.

The 45th Space Wing’s weather squadron keeps in constant contact with SpaceX officials, and together they make the final call on whether to move forward or hold off on launch.

President Donald Trump just arrived at Kennedy Space Center aboard Air Force One, and the plane took a quick detour over the launch pad to get a good view of the SpaceX rocket and Crew Dragon capsule.

The aircraft will land at the Shuttle Landing Facility — the same site where Space Shuttle orbiters used to land when they returned from space.

After taking a brief moment to keep an eye on the weather, the hatch was closed on the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule holding astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley.

They’ll stay locked inside the capsule, waiting for liftoff, while launch officials continue to monitor for storms and technical issues leading up the 4:33 pm ET liftoff time.

Just now, SpaceX carried out a series of communications checks to make sure the astronauts have contact with mission controllers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and SpaceX’s mission control in Hawthorne, California.

On acronym you may hear flying around on the livestream during checks is “GNC” — which stands for “Guidance, Navigation and Control.”

NASA has paid SpaceX a total of more than $3 billion via a fixed-price to build and test Crew Dragon. And one new analysis from the nonprofit Planetary Society suggests that, compared to previous NASA programs, the deal is a bargain.

As for the Russian Soyuz spacecraft, which has been the only vehicle capable of carrying humans to the International Space Station for a decade, there isn’t really a straightforward comparison.

Soyuz seats have cost NASA up to about $86 million each and around $55 million on average over the past decade, according to a 2019 report from NASA’s Office of the Inspector General.

That same report estimates that Crew Dragon seats will cost NASA about $55 million each. But those are estimates based on a contract that doesn’t clearly define the per-seat cost.

It’s still more than two hours until liftoff time, but conditions aren’t looking great.

Brevard County, home to the Kennedy Space Center launch site, was briefly under a tornado warning. That warning ended at 2:15 pm ET without any visible twisters coming near the launch site.

Flashes of lightning and thunder claps are a common occurrence, but weather officials are hoping it will pass before takeoff at 4:33 pm ET.

Speaking on NASA’s livestream, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk reflected on today’s launch:

NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley are at the launch pad and boarding the Crew Dragon spacecraft.

Crew Dragon is currently sitting on top of the 230-foot SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

To access their capsule, Hurley and Behnken climb up to an aerial “crew access arm.”

Meanwhile, an alarm rang out at the press site, warning of severe weather conditions. It’s possible heavy thunderstorms will roll through Kennedy Space Center.

But if they clear before liftoff, Behnken and Hurley could still take off today.

If not, NASA and SpaceX will plan to try again on May 30.

Robert “Bob” Behnken, 49, and his crewmate, Douglas Hurley, were both military test pilots before they joined NASA in 2000. The space agency has a long history of selecting test pilots, who spend hundreds of hours flying around in experimental supersonic aircraft, to be astronauts.

Hometown: St. Ann, Missouri.

Role in this mission: Joint operations commander. He will be responsible for some of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft’s major milestones, including docking with the International Space Station and undocking.

Total hours previously logged in space: 708

Last spaceflight: STS-130 in February 2010

One half of the duo that will pilot this historic spaceflight is Douglas “Doug” Hurley, 53. Both Hurley and his crewmate, Robert Behnken, were selected to be NASA astronauts in 2000 and are veterans of Space Shuttle missions. They’re also longtime friends who attended each others’ weddings.

Hometown: Apalachin, New York

Role in this mission: Spacecraft commander. He’s responsible for keeping things on track during launch and for landing and recovery when the astronauts return from space.

Total hours previously logged in space: 680

Last spaceflight: Hurley piloted the final space shuttle mission, STS-135, in July 2011.

Reporters lined the street as astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley passed by on the Saturn Causeway — the road that will take them to the launch pad.

Behnken and Hurley are now preparing to board SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule, where they’ll sit for the next three hours as NASA and SpaceX prepare for liftoff.

If the weather looks ok in the hours ahead, liftoff is slated to occur at 4:33 pm ET.

Officials said at about 1:45 pm ET that the odds of favorable weather stand at about 50-50.

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Astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley left their quarantine area around 1:15 pm ET on Wednesday.

Vice President Mike Pence, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine will see the astronauts off — along with the astronauts’ families. Behnken and Hurley are both married to fellow NASA astronauts and have small children.

To say farewell, the men, suited up in the SpaceX spacesuits, offered air hugs to their kids.

This mission will mark a triple crown of historic landmarks:

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