By Richard Tew
NASA correspondent for The Post Newspaper
NASA has been busy getting ready for their next commercial crew launch while also making headway prepping for the ARTEMIS II launch set for November 2024.
Recently, NASA announced the upcoming SpaceX Crew-7 mission, which launched Friday August 25 at 3:49 a.m. (EDT) from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Astronauts: Jasmin Moghbeli (Commander), European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen (pilot), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa (mission specialist) and Rosmosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov (mission specialist) will launch via a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket while abroad the SpaceX Dragon spaceship named “Endurance.”
The diverse crew represents a rare launch featuring astronauts from four different countries.
“It’s something that is very special and important to each of us to just represent what we can do when we work together in harmony and it’s one of the things I think we are most proud of is what we represent by being an all international crew,” said Moghbeli.
“Crew-7 marks the eighth human spaceflight mission supported by a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and the seventh crew rotation mission to the space station since 2020 for NASA,” said a NASA news release.”
Should the launch be scrubbed, NASA says there are additional launch windows August 26 and 27th.
The mission will focus on further experiments including swabbing the outside of the ISS for microorganisms, testing the effects of zero gravity and radiation on quail eggs
“We have a lot of exciting scientific research and technology development projects that we look forward to for the close to six months we will be on board the International Space Station,” said Mogensen.
Artemis II, set to launch in November 2024 and encircle the Moon on a research mission, took the next step in preparation with the crew recently visiting the Orion Spacecraft at The Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Orion is undergoing acoustic testing to verify the capsule can withstand the pressures and vibrations it will endure during launch aboard the SLS rocket. If all goes to plan, NASA says the Crew of four astronauts: Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), Kristina Hammock Koch (Mission Specialist) and Jeremy Hansen (Mission Specialist) will begin the next stage of their preparation for the flight around the Moon.
On their website NASA said, “With this test complete, technicians at Kennedy are on track to integrate Orion’s crew and service modules this Fall.”
Photo cutlines: Top, Artemis II Crew members: Reid Wiseman (Commander), Victor Glover (Pilot), Kristina Hammock Koch (Mission Specialist) and Jeremy Hansen (Mission Specialist) recently visited The Kennedy Space Center in Florida to check out the Orion Spacecraft currently being tested for the upcoming Artemis II mission set for November 2024. Bottom, members of the upcoming Crew-7 launch (August 25) to the ISS: Jasmin Moghbeli (Commander), European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen (pilot), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa (mission specialist) and Rosmosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov (mission specialist). Photo courtesy of NASA.
