posted 12-03-2019 05:17 PM               

Please use this topic to discuss SpaceX's nineteenth Dragon cargo flight to the International Space Station under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract.

posted 12-03-2019 05:19 PM               

SpaceX is targeting Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2019 for launch of its nineteenth Commercial Resupply Services mission (CRS-19) at 12:51 p.m. EST, or 17:51 UTC, from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

Dragon will separate from Falcon 9's second stage about nine minutes after liftoff and attach to the space station on Saturday, Dec. 7. A backup launch opportunity is available on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 12:29 p.m. EST, or 17:29 UTC.

posted 12-04-2019 08:59 AM               

"After Dragon is dropped off into orbit, the Falcon 9 second stage stage is going to continue on for a thermal demonstration," said Jessica Jensen, director of Dragon mission management at SpaceX. "So it's going to be a long six-hour coast that then results in a disposal burn.

"We need extra performance for that demonstration, so basically what we have to do is burn the first stage for a longer period of time, so that the second stage can have its performance reserved for that demo," Jensen said Tuesday. "Since we're burning the first stage for a longer period of time, it doesn't have as much fuel to come all the way back to the launch site. So we'll do a partial boost-back, which is where the drone ship is located."

Jensen said SpaceX is performing the thermal demonstration on Wednesday's launch for "some of our other customers for longer missions that we're going to have to fly in the future."

posted 12-04-2019 11:14 AM               

Standing down today due to upper altitude winds and high winds at sea creating dynamic conditions around the Of Course I Still Love You droneship – next launch opportunity is tomorrow at 12:29 p.m. EST, 17:29 UTC.

posted 12-05-2019 09:19 AM               

SpaceX is targeting Thursday, December 5 for launch of its nineteenth Commercial Resupply Services mission (CRS-19) at 12:29 p.m. EST, or 17:29 UTC, from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. Dragon will separate from Falcon 9’s second stage about nine minutes after liftoff and attach to the space station on Sunday, December 8.

posted 12-05-2019 11:43 AM               

Dragon's solar arrays have deployed, and it's on its way to the International Space Station. Capture by the space station crew set for early Sunday.