SpaceX Falcon 9 / Dragon 2 : SpX-DM2 : May 27, 2020 : DISCUSSION

[NX-0]

This crew is now prime, correct?

[FutureSpaceTourist]

Good article on how critical, or not, DM-2 is in current climate:

The Mission NASA Doesn’t Want to Postpone
So far, the pandemic isn’t stopping the space agency from moving forward with a historic SpaceX launch next month.

MARINA KOREN
7:00 AM ET

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/04/spacex-nasa-coronavirus-astronauts/609871/

[docmordrid]

May 27 it is 😎

https://www.nasa.gov/specials/dm2/

[ulm_atms]

May 27 it is 😎

https://www.nasa.gov/specials/dm2/

Ok, that intro video background made me smile 

[Steven Pietrobon]

From the SpaceX Dragon 2 animation.

What happened to PMA-3?

[woods170]

From the SpaceX Dragon 2 animation.

What happened to PMA-3?

Even SpaceX can make a rendering mistake.

[Kasponaut]

Hello!

I have a question - not sure if this is the right place for it. But here goes:

How much delta-v does Dragon 2/Crew Dragon and the Starliner have? Compared to eg. Orion?

Thank you.

Kasper

[Star One]

Good article on how critical, or not, DM-2 is in current climate:

The Mission NASA Doesn’t Want to Postpone
So far, the pandemic isn’t stopping the space agency from moving forward with a historic SpaceX launch next month.

MARINA KOREN
7:00 AM ET

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/04/spacex-nasa-coronavirus-astronauts/609871/

I would describe the article as seemingly disapproving of the decision. Especially as it gives a lot of space to Garver’s concerns.

[ZachS09]

Good article on how critical, or not, DM-2 is in current climate:

The Mission NASA Doesn’t Want to Postpone
So far, the pandemic isn’t stopping the space agency from moving forward with a historic SpaceX launch next month.

MARINA KOREN
7:00 AM ET

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2020/04/spacex-nasa-coronavirus-astronauts/609871/

I would describe the article as seemingly disapproving of the decision. Especially as it gives a lot of space to Garver’s concerns.

Are you hinting that Garver is considering postponing the mission due to the pandemic?

[1]

Garver hasn't been affiliated with NASA for the better part of a decade; and is thus unable to postpone anything other than her own personal trip to see a crewed launch.

She's also softened her stance on the subject yesterday; trusting NASA and SpaceX to get the job done safely.

https://mobile.twitter.com/Lori_Garver/status/1251198786615083008?p=v

Although further discussion about that should probably go in the op ed thread over in space policy.

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=44917.0

[Hog]

So watching the reply of the tower evacuation in an emergency - the astros shoot down the wire, get out of their gondolas and run to an armoured truck. So my question is - Is he/she sitting there right through every launch or does it clear the area once the pad abort is armed?

If I remember correctly from the Shuttle days, the MRAP is empty.  The evacuees drive the MRAP (edit: or use it as an in-place bunker).

Shuttle days used a tracked M113 tank. The Shuttle crews would enter the bunker located to the right of the yellow ramp. If they needed to escape further, they themselves would evacuate injured into the tank and escape.  there are plenty of videos with Shuttle crews "practicing" in the M113's.  If evacuation was impossible, they would shelter in place in the bunker until the secondary M113 was driven in by ground crews consisting of firefighters/rescue..

With SLS, the astros use the escape vehicle as a primary, and shelter in the bunker ONLY if escape is impossible.

STS-133 preps, everyone gets a turn driving as in an emergency no one knows exactly who will be able to drive.


attachments
1) Emergency Egress Vehicle for SLS (NASA got 4 MRAPS)
2) NASA M113
3) both side by side

[FutureSpaceTourist]

Oh dear, I hope this proves unfounded but I can understand that constraints of social distancing etc make business as usual very difficult

https://twitter.com/nova_road/status/1251622398631325696

Spaceflight reporters, who have been covering SpaceX + spaceflight for years, are worried about being denied access to the historic DM-2 mission in favor of limited spots for national outlets / wire services. Hoping we can have a dialogue with @JimBridenstine + @NASA before that.

[Lars-J]

Oh dear, I hope this proves unfounded but I can understand that constraints of social distancing etc make business as usual very difficult

https://twitter.com/nova_road/status/1251622398631325696

Spaceflight reporters, who have been covering SpaceX + spaceflight for years, are worried about being denied access to the historic DM-2 mission in favor of limited spots for national outlets / wire services. Hoping we can have a dialogue with @JimBridenstine + @NASA before that.

Well... duh. What did they expect, given the situation? Do they think their presence at the launch is important enough to delay the launch?

[AndrewRG10]

Oh dear, I hope this proves unfounded but I can understand that constraints of social distancing etc make business as usual very difficult

https://twitter.com/nova_road/status/1251622398631325696

Spaceflight reporters, who have been covering SpaceX + spaceflight for years, are worried about being denied access to the historic DM-2 mission in favor of limited spots for national outlets / wire services. Hoping we can have a dialogue with @JimBridenstine + @NASA before that.

Well... duh. What did they expect, given the situation? Do they think their presence at the launch is important enough to delay the launch?

Well I don't think reporters who have waited 9 years for this moment should be denied entry in favour of 'journalists' who didn't know what the commercial crew program was until a month before launch.

[Yazata]

'Journalists' don't have to all be crammed into some confined space, elbow to elbow, breathing on each other. Spread them out some and keep it from becoming a mob scene. Let the networks, photographers and the live-streamers all have suitable assigned spots where they are at least six feet from each other. Then they can just proceed to their spots on launch day without gathering in a herd.

Are NSF/Chris G. and Tim Dodd planning to do streams? I'd really hate to see the kind of small-media space-enthusiasts who do this as a labor of love excluded in favor of some big-name national-media hacks who don't know what's happening and care less. I trust that won't happen. Jim Bridenstine seems to me to be aware of the importance of both the occasion and the specialist space media.

[Hog]

'Journalists' don't have to all be crammed into some confined space, elbow to elbow, breathing on each other. Spread them out some and keep it from becoming a mob scene. Let the networks, photographers and the live-streamers all have suitable assigned spots where they are at least six feet from each other. Then they can just proceed to their spots on launch day without gathering in a herd.

Are NSF/Chris G. and Tim Dodd planning to do streams? I'd really hate to see the kind of small-media space-enthusiasts who do this as a labor of love excluded in favor of some big-name national-media hacks who don't know what's happening and care less. I trust that won't happen. Jim Bridenstine seems to me to be aware of the importance of both the occasion and the specialist space media.

I would also hope that Mr B is telling NASA Commercial Crew and the contracter, SX that when ANYONE is sending American astronauts/Test Pilots into orbit on a new launcher/vehicle for the first time since July 2011, when said launch will end reliance on Russian Soyuz/Soyuz for access to their own space station, that someone had better have a freaking camera imaging/recording device on every single video/data source feed.  It's a test flight so she'll be wired up nice.  Some of the Ascent videos for STS-133-135 were simply amazing.  This crewed test flight deserves similar efforts.  The post Columbia STS-107 Columbia imagery improvements around 39A-B and the stack were extensive.  Never again would a Shuttle Orbiter be able to sustain unseen TPS damage during launch. Shuttle was the safest it ever was.  This vehicle will be safer with American engines from American soil and can provide the hugely important orbital escape option for the ISS crews.  I'm Canadian and even I feel proud about Commercial Crews achievements  It was September 2011, when NASA released a draft request for proposals (RFP).
Let's light this candle it's going to be great.

[Robotbeat]

Garver hasn't been affiliated with NASA for the better part of a decade; and is thus unable to postpone anything other than her own personal trip to see a crewed launch.

She's also softened her stance on the subject yesterday; trusting NASA and SpaceX to get the job done safely.

https://mobile.twitter.com/Lori_Garver/status/1251198786615083008?p=v

Although further discussion about that should probably go in the op ed thread over in space policy.

https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=44917.0

I don't think this counts as political, but I appreciate when someone can change their mind.

[MATTBLAK]

I know why we're not supposed to talk about politics. But I've always maintained that if we don't at the very least pay attention to politics; sooner or later we're likely to be mown down by it like someone crossing the road whilst glued to their phone screen...

[FutureSpaceTourist]

https://twitter.com/trevormahlmann/status/1251658303568056322

Sounds like NASA will be limiting the number of media for DM-2. It is understandable but definitely a bummer that covering the return of human spaceflight in the US is up in the air for any of us. Hopeful for all my media colleagues vying to cover this historic  flight 🚀

[Yazata]

Falcon Heavy's first flight went from 39a, didn't it? I seem to recall that the TV remotes were kind of spread out for that one with good camera locations. So they should be able to work something out that would allow people like Chris G., Tim Dodd and all the photographers to do their things, along with media aristocracy like the broadcast networks and things like CNN, all while each location is suitably distant from its neighbors. Just prevent everyone from gathering in an enclosed press building.