The following SpaceX astronaut launch for NASA has been delayed by at least one more day due to Hurricane Ian, as reported first by Space.com.
The Crew-5 mission will now launch from Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida no sooner than Oct. 5, according to a blog post published by NASA officials on Wednesday night, Sept. 28.
Ian Delays Crew-5
The holdup is the result of Ian, a Category 4 hurricane that made landfall in southwest Florida on Wednesday. On Thursday, Sept. 29, the storm is anticipated to travel northeast along a route that would pass close to or through KSC.
Mission teams are still keeping an eye on Ian's effects on Florida's Space Coast and NASA's KSC, and they may decide to change the launch date once again if needed.
Kennedy Space Center issued a HURCON I status declaration at 6 p.m. on Sept. 28. The ride-out team is currently sheltering at their allocated sites until the storm passes, according to NASA.
Depending on the weather and the condition of the center, more information on the planning timeline, including crew arrival from the agency's Johnson Space Center to Kennedy, will be given in the upcoming days.
Hurricane Ian has already delayed Crew-5, on Tuesday, for instance, NASA and SpaceX declared that the hurricane had forced them to move the intended launch date from Oct. 3 to Oct. 4.
NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada will fly on the Crew-5 mission as the mission commander and pilot, respectively. Koichi Wakata of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Anna Kikina of Roscosmos will work as the mission specialists.
Crew-4, the most recent mission from SpaceX, is still on board the ISS but is shortly expected to return to Earth. The departure date for Crew-4 is dependent upon the launch date for Crew-5.
Ian Cancels Mission to the Moon
Hurricane Ian has also affected NASA's first mission to the moon after 50 years. The agency had to roll the massive Artemis 1 moon rocket off Pad 39B at KSC and back to the center's enormous Vehicle Assembly Building for protection against the storm.
The Kennedy Space Center is staffed with a small "ride-out" team to monitor the hardware and systems of NASA's spacecraft.
The US Space Force also took steps at the neighboring Cape Canaveral Space Force Station to protect the facility from Hurricane Ian, which is expected to hit the two spaceports by Thursday.
The astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) have been keeping an eye on Hurricane Ian as well. They recently captured breathtaking photographs of the hurricane on Monday, Sept. 26, as it headed south of Cuba into Florida.
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Written by Joaquin Victor Tacla
