After a nearly month-long delay, NASA and its mission partners say it’s almost time to send two astronauts to the International Space Station for a Boeing crewed flight test. Meanwhile, it will be the first time humans will fly aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. Here’s everything you need to know about the historic Starliner mission set to launch on Wednesday. >>> Click here to watch live streaming. About the mission: In this mission, two NASA astronauts will travel to the International Space Station in a Boeing Starliner spacecraft, which will sit atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. According to officials, it will take the astronauts about a week to get there. The purpose of the mission is to test the Starliner spacecraft and its subsystems, including maneuvering and docking, before NASA can certify the spacecraft for rotary missions. When is the start? The Starliner mission is set to launch at 10:52 a.m. on Wednesday, June 5. Where is the start? The Atlas V rocket and Starliner spacecraft lift off from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Who are astronauts? The flight test by the Boeing crew will be the first time people have traveled aboard the Starliner, which has flown without passengers in the past. Two NASA veterans, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, will be on board. Wilmore will be the mission commander and has been an astronaut for NASA since July 2000. He is a veteran of two space flights. Williams will be the pilot of the mission and has been a NASA astronaut since 1998. She is a veteran of two space missions. Both astronauts returned home after multiple mission delays, but returned to Central Florida last week to attempt a June 1 launch. As of the last check on Wednesday morning, two astronauts were in place inside the spacecraft. If all goes according to plan, they will both spend eight days on the International Space Station. Why was the mission delayed? When the original hangar was called in on May 6, officials listed the cause as a mechanical problem involving a “self-regulating liquid oxygen solenoid relief valve on the Centaur upper stage” on the Atlas V rocket. Officials returned the rocket to its vertical integration facility at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and successfully replaced the pressure control valve that prevents the oxygen tank from building up too much pressure. The launch was moved to May 17 to allow for more testing, but was pushed back to May 21, when Boeing said Starliner teams were working to resolve a small helium leak detected in the spacecraft’s service module. The launch was then pushed back to May 25 when officials announced that they again needed more time to resolve the issue. Officials eventually said they would abandon the May 25 launch attempt altogether. The launch has been put on hold indefinitely until officials say they are ready for a June 1 launch attempt. Last week, the mission partners were asked to proceed with plans for that launch and launched the Atlas V rocket onto the pad for the first time since the original scrub. On Saturday, the countdown was going smoothly when suddenly the officials scrubbed the start just minutes before the start. The sudden cleanup was caused by the failure of some ground support equipment. ULA said its teams worked overnight to identify the problem and were able to replace the faulty power system in its ground operations computers. At last check, ULA said the system is now after a series of functional checks. Where can I watch the launch in person? There will be several locations where you can view the launch of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft. Some include:Playalinda BeachSpace Launch Complex 1Kennedy Space Center Visitor ComplexMax Brewer BridgePort CanaveralKelly ParkCocoa Beach PierTo learn more about all the places to watch in person, click here. Where can I watch the launch online? WESH 2 will be streaming the entire launch from wesh .com, our free WESH 2 app and on WESH Facebook. The free WESH 2 app is available on the iTunes App Store for iOS devices and the Google Play Store for Android devices.
After a nearly month-long delay, NASA and its mission partners say it’s almost time to send two astronauts to the International Space Station for a Boeing crewed flight test.
The historic launch, which was originally cleared for May 6 and June 1 and has since been postponed numerous times, will be the first time humans will fly aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
Here’s everything you need to know about the historic Starliner mission set to launch on Wednesday.
>>> Click here to watch live streaming.
About the mission:
As part of this mission, two NASA astronauts will travel to the International Space Station in a Boeing Starliner spacecraft that will sit atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.
Officials say it will take about a week for the astronauts to get there.
The purpose of the mission is to test the Starliner spacecraft and its subsystems, including maneuvering and docking, before NASA can certify the spacecraft for spin missions.
When is the launch?
The Starliner mission is scheduled to launch on Wednesday, June 5 at 10:52 a.m.
Where is the start?
The launch of the Atlas V rocket and the Starliner spacecraft will take place from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Who are astronauts?
The flight test by the Boeing crew will be the first time people have traveled aboard the Starliner, which has flown without passengers in the past.
Two veteran NASA astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, will be on board.
Wilmore will be the mission commander and has been an astronaut for NASA since July 2000. He is a veteran of two space flights.
Williams will be the pilot of the mission and has been a NASA astronaut since 1998. She is a veteran of two space missions.
Both astronauts returned home after multiple mission delays, but returned to Central Florida last week to attempt a June 1 launch.
At last check Wednesday morning, two astronauts were in place inside the spacecraft.
Both will spend eight days on the International Space Station if all goes according to plan.
Why was the mission delayed?
When the original scrub was called in on May 6, officials listed the cause as a mechanical failure involving a “self-regulating liquid oxygen solenoid relief valve on the Centaur upper stage” on the Atlas V rocket.
Officials returned the rocket to its vertical integration facility at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and successfully replaced the pressure control valve that prevents the oxygen tank from building up too much pressure.
The launch was pushed back to May 17 to allow for more testing, but was pushed back to May 21, when Boeing said Starliner teams were working to fix a small helium leak detected in the spacecraft’s service module.
The launch was then pushed back to May 25, when officials announced that they again needed more time to resolve the issue.
In the end, officials said they would abandon the May 25 launch attempt altogether.
The launch was delayed indefinitely until officials said they were ready for a June 1 launch attempt.
Last week, mission partners asked to go ahead with plans for that launch and rolled the Atlas V rocket onto the pad for the first time since the initial scrubbing.
On Saturday, the countdown was going smoothly when suddenly the officials scrubbed the start just minutes before the start. The sudden scrub was caused by the failure of some ground support equipment.
ULA said their teams worked overnight to identify the problem and were able to replace the faulty power system in their ground operations computers.
At last check, ULA said the system is now operating normally after a series of functionality checks.
Where can I watch the launch in person?
The launch of the Boeing Starliner spacecraft will be available at several observation points. Some include:
- Playalinda beach
- Space Launch Complex 1
- Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex
- Max Brewer Bridge
- Port Canaveral
- Kelly Park
- Cocoa Beach pier
To learn more about all the locations for a personal tour, click here.
Where can I watch the start online?
WESH 2 will stream the entire launch from wesh.com, our free WESH 2 app and on WESH Facebook.
The free WESH 2 app is available on the iTunes App Store for iOS devices and the Google Play Store for Android devices.