A few hours from now, the next human spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS) will take off from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The Nasa SpaceX Crew-12 mission, which faced a brief delay over weather, will be launched with a team of four astronauts from various countries.
This mission helps in the continuation of important work under the commercial crew programme, ensuring regular rotation of astronauts who live and work above our planet.
Who are the astronauts on Crew 12 ?
The mission will include astronauts from the United States, Europe and Russia who will stay in the orbit for eight months, and will focus on science, technology and station maintenance tests.
According to US space agency Nasa (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), the team of Crew 12 includes Commander Jessica Meir, Pilot Jack Hathaway, and Mission Specialists Sophie Adenot and Andrey Fedyaev. The mission is particularly significant for Adenot, who is set to become the first astronaut from her European Space Agency class to fly to space.
The Crew 12 team will integrate with the Expedition 74 crew which is already on board, filling the gap created after a recent medical evacuation forced Crew-11 to return to Earth earlier than scheduled in January.
What kinds of experiments will the team focus on?
After the Dragon spacecraft docks into the International Space Station, the crew will conduct over 200 experiments. The eight-month mission will mainly focus on biological research, specifically the Venous Flow study, which studies how blood clots form in microgravity.
In addition, they will also test manual piloting skills for landing on the moon in future and examine Spaceflight Associated Neuro-ocular Syndrome to protect vision of astronauts.
Every minute they spend in weightlessness provides valuable data that helps the space agency prepare for future missions to Mars.
Launch timings
The crew is set to travel aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft Freedom, which will be launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket is scheduled to lift off from the Space Launch Complex 40 at 3:45 pm IST today.
This noon timings allows enthusiasts from India to watch the livestream of the broadcast as the rocket launches from the tower.
If the launch goes as planned, the dragon capsule will dock the ISS after approximately 28 hours.
Where to watch the livestream ?
Space and astronomy enthusiasts from India can stream the entire launch event from the official Youtube handle of Nasa. The space agency will also provide a continuous live stream of the launch from its official website.
Space enthusiasts in India can tune into any of the above digital platforms before the lift off at 3:45 pm.The broadcast will cover crew suiting up, walking to the launch pad, and the final countdown.
In addition, Space X will also stream the event live on its social media handles and website, offering different angles of the launch.
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