Crew 7: Undocking confirmed, at 11:20am EDT (1520 UTC); the spacecraft is backing away from the International Space Station; looking ahead, deorbit ignition is expected around 4:55am EDT Tuesday with splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico targeted for 5:50am (0950 UTC)
Dragon and four humans heading home.Overview article covering the end of mission milestones - by Justin Davenport:
Departing the KOS (Keep Out Sphere).
Dragon Undocks From Station, Crew Headed Back to EarthThe SpaceX Dragon spacecraft with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov inside undocked from the forward-facing port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module at 11:20 a.m. EDT to complete a nearly six-month science mission.NASA coverage of Crew-7’s return will continue with audio only, and full coverage will resume at the start of the splashdown broadcast. Real-time audio between Crew-7 and flight controllers at NASA’s Mission Audio stream will remain available and includes conversations with astronauts aboard the space station and a live video feed from the orbiting laboratory.NASA TV coverage will resume at 4:30 a.m. Tuesday until Dragon splashes down at approximately 5:50 a.m. on Tuesday, March 12, off the coast of Florida and Crew-7 members are recovered.NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission launched Aug. 26, 2023, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft carrying the Crew-7 quartet approaches the International Space Station for docking on August 27, 2023, as it soared 261 miles above the Atlantic Ocean.
Looks like this will be a descending node entry, so flying in across the continental US and approaching the Florida waters from the northwest? If so, a somewhat rare sighting / hearing opportunity for many of us, especially with the clear weather, although that 5:xx AM time is no fun
I watched the docking coverage and have reviewed this thread. They've said they are landing in the Gulf, so one of the western targets, but have they said which one yet? Pensacola, Panama City, Tallahassee, Tampa? I know they used to not say at all (after the extremely regrettable Demo-2 incident) but more recently they have been saying it. Not decided yet?
Quote from: ChrisC on 03/11/2024 04:36 pmI watched the docking coverage and have reviewed this thread. They've said they are landing in the Gulf, so one of the western targets, but have they said which one yet? Pensacola, Panama City, Tallahassee, Tampa? I know they used to not say at all (after the extremely regrettable Demo-2 incident) but more recently they have been saying it. Not decided yet?Based upon where Megan is (see previous page) Tampa is probably out.I just checked (126 PM MDT) and Megan is almost due south of Pensacola. It probably could easily change positions to support a Panama City splashdown.
