Stephen Smith 🇺🇦
I am a long-time advocate of space exploration, settlement and commerce. Migrated from @WordsmithFL on Twitter.
Joined Nov 2022
#NASA #SpaceX #Space #SpaceCoast
A personal story ...
Some months, perhaps years, before this, I was narrating a bus tour headed towards Pad 39A.
Coming our way was a motorcade with SWAT vehicles and three white Teslas.
I texted a SpaceX friend to ask if she knew what was up. She said she'd check.
A couple minutes later, she replied, "Holy sh*t!"
"What?!"
"They're doing a rehearsal for the first commercial crew launch!"
"Holy sh*t!" I replied.
So we'd witnessed history.
#NASA #Space #SpaceCoast #SpaceX
The SpaceX highlight reel for the Demonstration Mission 2 (DM-2) flight, three years ago today -- the return of crewed spaceflight to #KSC and the U.S.
#NASA #Space #SpaceCoast #SpaceX
Three years ago today, human spaceflight returned to #KSC with the SpaceX crew Dragon's first crewed test flight. Amateur video from outside the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit.
https://www.facebook.com/wordsmithfl/videos/3366109870090572/
"#SpaceX has strung together a remarkable 199 successful launches of the Falcon 9 rocket. Late tonight, at 11:02 pm local time in California (06:02 UTC Wednesday), SpaceX has a chance to reach 200 successful launches with a Starlink mission lifting off from Vandenberg #SpaceForce Base." #Space
This popped up in research ... It's a 2000 WFAA-TV news report about Beal Aerospace test firing an engine at McGregor, which today is the #SpaceX test site. SpaceX succeeded where Beal failed.
https://www.flightmuseum.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/WFAA-8.mp4
#AxiomSpace is about to launch the second American private commercial crew mission to #ISS on a #SpaceX Falcon 9. Launch time is targeting 5:37 PM EDT. Watch live now on the SpaceX YouTube channel.
When I worked at #KSC, I was always asked by members of the public, "When can I go into space?"
That era has begun. Today is the second purely private American crew flight to #ISS. #AxiomSpace will launch a crew of four with #SpaceX from Pad 39A. The crew will be led by former #NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, now an Axiom employee.
#NASA announced that #BlueOrigin has won the second #Artemis commercial lunar lander contract. (#SpaceX was the first.)
Blue has been busy building a lunar lander factory complex on Space Commerce Road near the #KSC Visitor Complex, so no real surprise.
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-blue-origin-as-second-artemis-lunar-lander-provider
A note about the video documentary ...
Two Cape buildings were running the mission. The blockhouse at the pad, "Launch Control," was responsible for launching the rocket.
"Mission Control" was elsewhere on the Cape. They ran the mission.
That continues to this day. NASA has a Mission Control in Houston for the #ISS, but a separate one for #Artemis.
#SpaceX has two launch controls -- one for Pad 40, one for Pad 39A -- but their mission control is in Hawthorne CA.
#SpaceCoast #Space #NASA #SpaceX #BlueOrigin
NASASpaceflight.com does occasional flyovers of Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island to show what's going on. It's a great overview for those of you interested in the space biz.
Amateur video with my smartphone of the #SpaceX #FalconHeavy launch from #NASA #KSC Pad 39A.
The webcast is live for the #SpaceX #FalconHeavy launch from #NASA #KSC Pad 39A at 8:26 PM EDT.
Due to high ground winds, #SpaceX has delayed tonight's #FalconHeavy launch from #NASA #KSC Pad 39A to 8:26 PM EDT, the end of tonight's launch window.
Now that the bad weather has moved on, #SpaceX will try again tonight to launch the #FalconHeavy from Pad 39A at #NASA #KSC. The launch window opens at 7:29 PM EDT.
#SpaceX tweeted overnight that, due to today's poor weather forecast, the #FalconHeavy launch is now targeting Sunday evening. Pad 39A at #NASA #KSC.
It's official, tonight's #SpaceX #FalconHeavy launch attempt is scrubbed.
The #SpaceX #FalconHeavy countdown went into a hold at T-59 seconds. Waiting to hear if they'll attempt again tonight or if it's scrubbed for the night. The weather forecast for tomorrow is not good.
Here's the webcast link for the #SpaceX #FalconHeavy launch targeting 8:26 PM EDT from #NASA #KSC. Must see TV!
#SpaceCoast New launch time for #SpaceX #FalconHeavy targeting 8:26 PM EDT from #NASA #KSC Pad 39A.
Stephen Smith 🇺🇦
I am a long-time advocate of space exploration, settlement and commerce. Migrated from @WordsmithFL on Twitter.
Joined Nov 2022