SpaceX Falcon 9/Dragon COTS Demo (C2+) PRE LAUNCH UPDATES

[Galactic Penguin SST]

The Falcon 9 on the launch pad. (source: SpaceX's Facebook account)

[mr. mark]

Old pic from wet dress you can tell because Dragon is covered and no dragon logos on solar pontoons.

[ChefPat]

I just checked the weather for Cape Canaveral, there's a Thunderstorm predicted for tonight & Sunny with 20+ mph gusts tomorrow, 83 degrees & horrifically humid. The long range forecast calls for rain on the 6th & Sunny & Hot on the 7th.

[grakenverb]

What time is the launch planned for on May 7th?  I'm making my work schedule for next week and would like to be able to watch.........

[corrodedNut]

What time is the launch planned for on May 7th?  I'm making my work schedule for next week and would like to be able to watch.........

1338 GMT, 9:38 am EDT

[grakenverb]

What time is the launch planned for on May 7th?  I'm making my work schedule for next week and would like to be able to watch.........

1338 GMT, 9:38 am EDT

Thank you! 

[Space Pete]

Some technical observations on the Dragon CBM hatch:

As we already know from previous images, the Dragon CBM bulkhead is covered with a white heat-proof material, which features removable panels to expose the vestibule connectors.

With regard the CBM hatch itself, it has also been noted previously that the Dragon CBM hatch is mounted upside-down from its normal orientation on other vehicles or ISS modules - meaning the tension rod assemblies (which secure the hatch closed during launch & landing) are on the inside of the vehicle, instead of the outside. This is likely to protect the tension rods from the heat of re-entry (if the tension rods melted, the hatch would come open, leading to depressurisation and loss of cargo).

The tension rod assemblies are usually on the outside of the hatch in order to allow the ISS crew access to the rods (for observation/intervention/removal) in case the hatch jams or fails to open. Thus, having the rods on the inside represents an increased risk there - although likely the risk of having them on the outside, and thus exposed to re-entry, is higher.

It has also been noted in the past that what appears to be a camera inside Dragon, pointing toward the hatch area, may be either for observation that the tension rods operate correctly, or observation of heat loads on the hatch area during re-entry - or maybe both of the above.

The outside of the Dragon CBM hatch (which is usually on the inside of other vehicles), unobstructed by the tension rods, is covered in what appears to be a heat-proof gold blanket (see attached image).

More stuff like this to come throughout the Dragon mission, as we finally start to see photos of how SpaceX have solved the stuff we've all been wondering about!

-----
Edit:

An additional observation: The CBM hatch window is actually non-existant (it is blocked off with a metal plate) - again likely due to heat load concerns. Having windows in hatches is usually a requirement, so that the crew can observe for any debris prior to opening the hatch. So, as with the tension rods, this could be a break from nominal procedure or a waived requirement. This may also be another explanation for the internal camera.

[edfishel]

Pete... love those details. Keep them coming!

[oiorionsbelt]

That means they are not trying to improve their rollout to launch time with this launch. 60 minutes roll out to launch is a stated goal.
As Urgordon pointed out earlier, it will be interesting to see if they can pull off the static fire first time, at the intended time, as this is crucial to next weeks launch with an instantaneous window.

It depends on if they are going power up the Dragon and put it into launch configuration.

Watching the webcast it appears they are powering up Dragon and putting into launch configuration

[ChefPat]

The long range weather forecast is calling for rain on the 7th. I sure hope it changes.

[psloss]

The long range weather forecast is calling for rain on the 7th.

Whose forecast and when on the 7th?

[Lee Jay]

It has also been noted in the past that what appears to be a camera inside Dragon, pointing toward the hatch area, may be either for observation that the tension rods operate correctly, or observation of heat loads on the hatch area during re-entry - or maybe both of the above.

A thermal camera can't be mounted behind a dome or else it would be detecting the temperature of the dome instead of what's behind it.

[ugordan]

The long range weather forecast is calling for rain on the 7th. I sure hope it changes.

IMHO it's not worth bothering with weather forecasts this far out.

[ugordan]

A thermal camera can't be mounted behind a dome or else it would be detecting the temperature of the dome instead of what's behind it.

There are optics in front of the detector in any case and IR light interacts with it. What's so different about one more layer of transparent material if it's carefully chosen?

[pippin]

A thermal camera can't be mounted behind a dome or else it would be detecting the temperature of the dome instead of what's behind it.

Depends on the dome
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r9ih6he768I/Tsdx5RAmyLI/AAAAAAAAFVA/OmJOKEYHgmU/s1600/AIM-9x2_Raytheon+export+f-16+15++pakistan+india.jpg

[zeke01]

The long range weather forecast is calling for rain on the 7th. I sure hope it changes.

Meh.

Objective guidance suggest near climatology values at that time range ~30% chance of rain from both U.S. and European models -- in other words low confidence.  Much too early to say rain six days out, let alone what time of day.

[DaveS]

The long range weather forecast is calling for rain on the 7th. I sure hope it changes.

IMHO it's not worth bothering with weather forecasts this far out.

Correct. And I guess the forecast for rain comes from a automated weather service right? Those are not worth dealing with as they tend to be more wrong than right.

[subzero788]

No point trying to guess the weather on an NET date anyway

[Nomadd]

A thermal camera can't be mounted behind a dome or else it would be detecting the temperature of the dome instead of what's behind it.

There are optics in front of the detector in any case and IR light interacts with it. What's so different about one more layer of transparent material if it's carefully chosen?

Not so much the dome blocking the IR but the dome radiating IR. If it's the same temp as the sensor, there shouldn't be a problem as long as it's (obviously) transparent to the right wavelengths.

[mr. mark]

NASA video about Dragon berthing for this flight.
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?collection_id=80591&media_id=142266251#