From the ongoing DM-2 review media briefing: The Dragon recovery ships will have 44 (!!) people onboard for the recovery operation.5 contractors (GO) driving the vessel, ~20 from SpaceX and ~20 from NASA.
They have the ability to move people between the two vessels (One will be stationed in the Atlantic and the other in Gulf of Mexico) via helicopter, depending on the chosen splashdown site.
With the first crewed water landing in 45 years scheduled for August 2, Benji Reed of @SpaceX reviews the re-entry steps through splashdown that @Astro_Doug and @AstroBehnken will take aboard Crew Dragon Endeavour for the return of #LaunchAmerica.
NASA and SpaceX Remain GO for SplashdownFollowing a comprehensive review of the latest weather forecast in the areas surrounding each of seven potential splashdown locations, NASA and SpaceX have decided to move forward with plans to bring NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley home to Earth with a splashdown off the Florida coast on Sunday, Aug. 2, aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon “Endeavour” spacecraft.Teams will continue to closely monitor Tropical Storm Isaias and evaluate impacts to weather around the Florida peninsula, including the potential splashdown sites in the Gulf of Mexico and along the state’s Atlantic coast. NASA and SpaceX will make a decision on a primary splashdown target approximately 6 hours before undocking Saturday.Undocking remains scheduled for approximately 7:34 p.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 1, and splashdown at 2:42 p.m. EDT on Sunday. This will mark the first return of a commercially built and operated American spacecraft carrying astronauts from the space station, and it will wrap up NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 mission after more than two months at the International Space Station.The Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying Hurley and Behnken lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 30 and arrived at the space station the following day. The Demo-2 test flight is helping NASA certify SpaceX’s crew transportation system for regular flights carrying astronauts to and from the orbiting laboratory. SpaceX is readying the hardware for the first rotational mission, which would occur following NASA certification.More details about the return can be found in the Top 10 Things to Know for NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 Return and the splashdown weather criteria fact sheet.
Link for tomorrow’s astronaut Q&A
I asked if they could tell us a little more about the tests they've performed on Crew Dragon Endeavour and whether they feel ready to return.Hurley: We tested interfaces, emergency comms, emergency equipment, and "just generically how we work with the Dragon docked."
What happens after splashdown? 🤔@Astro_Doug explains step by step how the @SpaceX Dragon Endeavour will be recovered after he and @AstroBehnken arrive back to Earth after two months aboard the @Space_Station:
GO Searcher has departed from Port Canaveral to support the Atlantic Ocean Demo-2 landing locations!GO Navigator is already in position to support the Gulf of Mexico landing locations.
Departure: GO Searcher (Crew Dragon support) and GO Quest (support ship) are seen leaving @PortCanaveral just now, likely to support additional backup landing locations for @Astro_Doug and @AstroBehnken's return to Earth in the coming days🇺🇸
GO Quest is also following along but is likely heading to Jacksonville to shelter inland away from the incoming Hurricane Isaias. The ship only returned with OCISLY this morning.
SpaceX & NASA are targeting either Pensacola or Panama City for the return and splashdown of Demo-2 on Sunday, according to the latest FAA flight restrictions:
A NASA spokesperson says that Panama City is the “prime” zone for Demo-2’s splashdown as of the most recent weather briefing, but that could easily change before the “real call” 6 hours before Crew Dragon Endeavour’s deorbit burn.
NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2: Weather Remains ‘GO’ for Return, Live Coverage TomorrowTeams from NASA and SpaceX are proceeding with preparations to bring NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley home to Earth on Sunday, Aug. 2, after receiving a weather briefing this evening from the U.S. Air Force 45th Weather Squadron.Conditions remain “Go” at several of the needed target locations for splashdown and recovery off the Florida coast on Sunday aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon “Endeavour” spacecraft. NASA and SpaceX will make a decision on a primary splashdown target approximately 6 hours before undocking Saturday.Teams continue to closely monitor Hurricane Isaias and evaluate impacts to the landing sites in the Gulf of Mexico along the Florida Panhandle. Teams have several weather decision milestones ahead of and after undocking to adjust the splashdown location and time based on the forecasted conditions for recovery.Undocking remains scheduled for approximately 7:34 p.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 1, and splashdown at 2:42 p.m. EDT on Sunday. This will mark the first return of a commercially built and operated American spacecraft carrying astronauts from the space station, and it will wrap up NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 mission after more than two months at the International Space Station.NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 return coverage is as follows (all times Eastern):Saturday, Aug. 19:10 a.m. – SpaceX Dragon Demo-2 Farewell Ceremony aboard the International Space Station (ceremony begins about 9:15 a.m.)5:15 p.m. – NASA TV undocking coverage begins for the 7:34 p.m. undocking (NASA Television will have continuous coverage from undocking to splashdown)Sunday, Aug. 22:42 p.m. – Splashdown5 p.m. – Administrator post-splashdown news conference from the Johnson Space Center, with the following participants:NASA Administrator Jim BridenstineSteve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew ProgramInternational Space Station representativeGwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer, SpaceXNASA Astronaut Office representativeTuesday, Aug. 4 4:30 p.m. – Demo-2 crew news conference at Johnson, with the following participants:NASA astronaut Bob BehnkenNASA astronaut Doug HurleyThe Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying Hurley and Behnken lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 30 and arrived at the space station the following day. The Demo-2 test flight is helping NASA certify SpaceX’s crew transportation system for regular flights carrying astronauts to and from the orbiting laboratory. SpaceX is readying the hardware for the first rotational mission, which would occur following NASA certification.More details about the return can be found in the Top 10 Things to Know for NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 Return and the splashdown weather criteria fact sheet. [both already included up thread]Author Tori Mclendon Posted on July 31, 2020
The SpaceX recovery fleet will shortly be arriving at Jacksonville.They will shelter further inland, attempting to avoid the worst of Hurricane Isaias.
