Skip to main content

NASA sets new SpaceX Crew-3 launch date after second delay

NASA has delayed the launch of SpaceX’s Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) while one of the astronauts deals with a “minor” medical issue.

The launch from the Kennedy Space Center was originally set for early Sunday morning but was delayed until Wednesday due to an approaching storm. On Monday, NASA announced the second delay and is now targeting 11:36 p.m. ET (8:36 p.m. PT) on Saturday, November 6 for launch.

Recommended Videos

The Crew-3 mission includes NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, and Kayla Barron, along with Matthias Maurer from the European Space Agency.

A message posted on NASA’s website declined to name the astronaut with the medical issue, though it did say that it’s not a medical emergency and is unrelated to the coronavirus.

“The agency takes every effort to protect the crew prior to its launch through a health stabilization plan,” NASA said, adding that the Crew-3 astronauts will stay in quarantine facilities at the Kennedy Space Center until launch.

It said the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket are “in good shape” and will remain at Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy until launch.

Digital Trends has full details on how to watch a livestream of the Crew-3 launch this weekend.

Crew-3 will be the third crew rotation mission with astronauts on the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and the fourth flight overall to carry astronauts, with the Demo-2 test flight in summer 2020 being the first to do so.

The arrival of the four astronauts at the space station this weekend will see the population of the orbiting outpost grow to 11. But in the coming weeks, the count will drop to seven as the Crew-2 astronauts head back to Earth on another Crew Dragon spacecraft currently docked at the ISS.

As we wait for launch day, take a moment to enjoy again the Crew Dragon’s very first astronaut mission that took place last year with NASA’s Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken. The successful test mission marked the first astronaut launch and landing in U.S. territory since the end of the space shuttle program in 2011 and paved the way for regular crewed missions to and from the ISS using SpaceX’s reusable spaceflight hardware.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
SpaceX captures Starship booster for the first time in historic test
Mechazilla catching Starship booster stage.

SpaceX has scripted history with the fifth test of its massive Starship rocket system. The giant rocket launched from the Starbase site in South Texas earlier today, and following a brief trip to space, the reusable spacecraft made a splashdown in the Indian Ocean.

But the more remarkable feat was the successful capture of the Super Heavy booster, a fully reusable first stage that stands at a towering 71 meters and draws power from 33 Raptor engines. Up till now, the boosters have splashed into the water (or got damaged), but this time, SpaceX managed to capture it using giant mechanical arms.

Read more
How to watch SpaceX’s fifth Starship test flight on Sunday
spacex starship fifth flight live stream 5 website desktop 1 12e2f537a0 jpg

SpaceX is getting ready to launch its mighty Starship on its fifth test flight, scheduled for Sunday, October 13. With a mostly-successful fourth test flight behind it, the Starship has already been into orbit and returned to Earth mostly intact. This time, SpaceX will be hoping to catch its Super Heavy booster as well as taking the upper stage Starship into orbit.

The exact date of this fifth test flight has been delayed due to issues with licensing from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), but SpaceX has now confirmed it is targeting 8 a.m. ET (5 a.m. PT) Sunday for its test.

Read more
SpaceX could launch Starship on 5th test flight much earlier than expected
The world's most powerful rocket on the launchpad.

There’s growing expectation that SpaceX could launch the mighty Starship rocket as early as Sunday, October 13.

SpaceX was informed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) last month that it was unlikely to receive a launch permit until late November as the regulator needed time to complete work on its flight launch assessment.

Read more