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NASA and SpaceX postpone launch of Crew-6 mission

NASA and SpaceX postpone launch of Crew-6 mission

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Update: the mission was called off two minutes from launch due to an issue igniting Falcon 9’s engines.

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The Crew-6 mission bound for the International Space Station was postponed on Monday after experiencing last-minute technical issues just minutes from launch. With the help of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, the company’s Dragon Endeavour spacecraft was set to lift off early Monday morning at 1:45AM ET from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The launch countdown was “scrubbed” with just two minutes remaining “due to an issue with ground systems,” according to NASA, later revealed to be a problem with the TEA-TEB ignition fluid used to ignite the SpaceX Falcon 9’s rocket engines.

NASA and SpaceX are now hoping to launch the Crew-6 mission at 12:34 a.m. EST Thursday, March 2nd “pending resolution of the technical issue preventing Monday’s launch.”

The spacecraft will carry four astronauts, including NASA’s Stephen Bowen and Warren “Woody” Hoburg, as well as the United Arab Emirates’ Sultan Alneyadi and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev. They’re headed to the International Space Station for an up to six-month stay, where they’ll conduct various research projects to help “prepare for human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit and benefit life on Earth.”

At the ISS, they’ll join the seven-member Expedition 69 crew and the history-making Crew-5 astronauts, who will depart shortly after Crew-6’s arrival. This marks the seventh time SpaceX has flown astronauts aboard its Dragon spacecraft as part of the NASA Commercial Crew Program and the company’s ninth crewed flight in total.

The crew was initially set to dock at the ISS on Tuesday, February 28th at 2:38AM ET following their 25-hour journey — just days after the replacement capsule for Russia’s leaky Soyuz spacecraft docked at the station.

Update — February 27th, 5.20AM ET: This story has been updated following the Crew-6 mission launch being postponed.