NASA, SpaceX Prepare for March 14 Crew Launch to Space Station 

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the company’s Dragon spacecraft on top is seen during sunset on the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-10 launch. Crew-10 is the 10th crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, sending NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, along with JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov to the orbiting laboratory for about a four-month science mission. Liftoff is targeted for 7:03 p.m. EDT Friday, March 14, 2025. SpaceX

NASA and SpaceX are proceeding with plans to launch the agency’s Crew-10 mission at 7:03 p.m. EDT Friday, March 14, to the International Space Station. On Thursday, SpaceX ground teams completed inspections of the ground support hydraulics system used for the clamp arm supporting the Falcon 9 rocket and successfully flushed a suspected pocket of trapped air in the system.

Launch coverage will begin at 3 p.m. on March 14 on NASA+. 

Weather is forecasted to be excellent on the Space Coast heading into the March 14 launch opportunity. The current forecast is a greater-than-95% chance of acceptable conditions at launch. Weather along the Atlantic coast is also expected to be favorable for the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft’s trip to orbit. Chances of weather violations increase on Saturday, March 15, and Sunday, March 16, to 50% and 60%, respectively.

“I am extremely proud of our NASA and SpaceX ground engineers and joint operations teams in quickly identifying and resolving this issue,” said Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. “I’m especially proud of the team’s systematic approach throughout the countdown, analyzing data and making thoughtful decisions to ensure the integrity of our mission. Their commitment to both excellence and safety is a true testament to the strength of this integrated team.” 

NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov will fly to the International Space Station aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft atop a Falcon 9 rocket. A regular crew rotation mission aboard the orbiting laboratory, the Crew-10 team will be part of the Expedition 72/73 crew while on station where they will perform dozens of science experiments during their several-month stay in orbit. 

After arriving at the station for docking about 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 15, the Crew-10 members will spend a couple of days familiarizing themselves with the station’s systems. Crew-10 will rotate roles with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 crew, including agency astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. The Crew-9 mission, which has a separate Dragon spacecraft already docked to the space station, will then undock from the orbiting laboratory and return the Earth. Crew-9 undock is scheduled for no earlier than Wednesday, March 19.

Crew-10 is the agency’s 10th crew rotation mission of SpaceX’s human space transportation system and its 11th flight with crew aboard, including the Demo-2 test flight, to the space station through NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

Quelle: NASA

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Quelle: SpaceX NASA