SpaceX Crew-9

SpaceX Crew-9 was the ninth operational NASA Commercial Crew Program flight and the 15th crewed orbital flight of a Crew Dragon spacecraft. Originally scheduled to carry a crew of four to the International Space Station (ISS) in mid-August 2024, the mission was delayed by more than a month by problems with the spacecraft that was docked at the ISS for the Boeing Crew Flight Test. NASA decided to send the Starliner back to Earth uncrewed, launch Crew-9 with two crew members, and return with four crew members, including the two crew members of the Boeing Crew Flight Test. After that delay and other delays largely due to weather, Crew-9 launched on 28 September at 17:17:21UTC (1:17:21pm EDT, local time at the launch site).

The Crew-9 mission marked several milestones. It was the first crewed mission to launch from Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex 40; astronaut Nick Hague was the first active U.S. Space Force Guardian to launch to space; and the mission was the last Dragon capsule to splash down in the eastern United States.

Crew

The mission was initially to bring four crew members to the International Space Station (ISS): NASA astronauts Zena Cardman, Nick Hague, and Stephanie Wilson; and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. Cardman was to be the commander and Hague the pilot, while Wilson and Gorbunov would serve as mission specialists. However, due to technical problems with the Boeing Starliner, NASA decided to return the Starliner uncrewed and launch Crew-9 with two open seats to return the Boeing Crew Flight Test astronauts to Earth.

On 24 August 2024, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, along with a panel of agency officials, announced that the Boeing Starliner would return uncrewed and its astronauts would return on Crew-9. On 30 August, NASA announced that Hague and Gorbunov would fly on Crew-9 with Hague serving as commander. Gorbunov was required to fly as part of a NASA-Roscosmos crew interchange agreement. Before the official announcement, Ars Technica reported that there was disagreement within NASA over who should fill the commander's seat in those six days. According to the reporting, NASA Chief Astronaut, Joe Acaba had initially selected Cardman to continue as commander, which had been met with some concerns in the astronaut office, stemming from NASA's history of never launching a mission without a test pilot or experienced astronaut in command. Both Cardman and Gorbunov are rookie astronauts who have never served as a test pilot. Hague, on the other hand, has prior spaceflight experience and is one of the few individuals who have survived a launch abort (with Soyuz MS-10).

Following the crew changes, SpaceX, NASA, Cardman, Hague, Wilson, and Gorbunov collaborated for three weeks to identify how Hague could assume many of the tasks typically divided between the commander and pilot and determine which tasks could be assigned to Gorbunov, who would sit in the pilot's seat during launch. While Gorbunov is a qualified engineer and holds the rank of test cosmonaut (making him eligible to be a Soyuz commander), he had only previously received basic training on the Dragon in his role as a mission specialist. Although only serving in a limited capacity, Gorbunov will be the first Russian cosmonaut to be at the controls of an American spacecraft.

Original crew

Mission

SpaceX Crew-9 is the ninth operational NASA Commercial Crew Program flight to the International Space Station (ISS) and the 15th crewed orbital mission for a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. The flight was originally planned to deliver four crew members to the ISS for Expedition 72, a six-month science mission: NASA astronauts Zena Cardman (commander), Nick Hague (pilot), and Stephanie Wilson (mission specialist), along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov (mission specialist). However, NASA decided to return the two astronauts of the Starliner crewed flight test, using Crew-9. Therefore, Crew-9 launched with a crew of two instead. Hague served as commander, flying alongside Gorbunov.

The Dragon spacecraft, named ''Freedom'', is a veteran of the SpaceX Crew-4 and Axiom Space's Ax-2 and Ax-3 missions. The Falcon 9 first-stage booster, designated B1085, made its second flight.

Originally scheduled for 18 August 2024, the launch was rescheduled to 24 September after NASA decided to return the spacecraft of the Boeing Crew Flight Test without its crew. This delay provided NASA additional time to assess the Starliner's condition, develop a safe return plan for its crew, and reconfigure the Starliner's software for an uncrewed return. ISS has only two IDSS ports, and one was occupied by Crew-8 while the other was occupied by Starliner. Therefore, Crew-9 did not launch until after Starliner undocked. Until Crew-9 arrived, they arranged to use SpaceX Crew-8 as their temporary emergency evacuation spacecraft, after which they transferred to Crew-9.

Crew-9 was slated to use Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center, which had supported all previous SpaceX's crewed missions and is also the only pad that can support Falcon Heavy launches. When Crew-9's launch was rescheduled to 24 September, it was brought close to the launch NASA's Europa Clipper mission, which needed to launch from LC-39A on a Falcon Heavy during a 21-day window in early October. To avoid scheduling conflicts and ensure ample preparation time for both missions, SpaceX shifted the Crew-9 launch to Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. This was the first crewed mission to lift off from SLC-40. SpaceX had been constructing a crew access tower at this location since 2023 to facilitate such operations.

Hague, a U.S. Space Force colonel, is the first active member of the Space Force to launch into space since the branch was established in 2019. Because the launch moved to SLC-40, the mission also marks the first time a Space Force service member launched from a Space Force launch complex.

Crew Dragon ''Freedom'' was relocated from the forward port of the ''Harmony'' module to the zenith (space facing) port to free up the forward port for CRS-31. All four astronauts that would later be returning home on ''Freedom'' were aboard the capsule for the relocation because the spacecraft is also the crew's "lifeboat".

The mission featured the last Dragon capsule splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico in March 2025. While SpaceX Dragon 1 missions had previously landed in the Pacific, SpaceX and NASA had shifted recovery operations to the Eastern U.S. in 2019. The move allowed astronauts and critical cargo to return to Kennedy Space Center more quickly after splashdown, and SpaceX opened a facility in Florida to take in capsules after flight and prepare them for the next mission. However, the move had an unforeseen consequence: the trunk module had to be jettisoned before reentry, and while the team expected it would burn up, SpaceX became aware of at least four cases of trunk debris being found on land. The shift back to Pacific Ocean splashdowns means that the trunk can stay attached longer and be directed towards a remote area of the ocean called Point Nemo (nicknamed the spacecraft cemetery), where any debris that survives reentry will be unlikely to cause damage.

SpaceX Crew-10, carrying four astronauts to replace Crew-9, arrived at the ISS on 16 March 2025. NASA typically schedules a week-long handover period to allow extra staffing aboard the station while the new crew completes orientation tasks and the departing crew prepares for their return. However, due to a delay in an upcoming supply flight, which necessitated conserving resources like food, and a brief window of favorable weather in the Gulf of Mexico for splashdown, the handover was shortened to just two days.

Launch

Hague and Gorbunov arrived at Kennedy Space Center on Saturday, 21 September 2024, to prepare for their mission. The crew was scheduled to quarantine at the Operations and Checkout Building, where they conducted a dry dress rehearsal, adjusted their sleep schedules, and rehearsed flight procedures. At the time, the launch date was set for Thursday, 26 September.

On Tuesday, 24 September, the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and capsule were rolled out to SLC-40. However, due to the approaching Hurricane Helene, NASA announced that the Crew-9 launch was delayed until Saturday, 28 September.

Following a successful static fire and final dress rehearsal on Tuesday, the SpaceX Dragon and Falcon 9 rocket were rolled back to the hangar on Wednesday, 25 September 2024, as a precaution against potential weather impacts from Hurricane Helene, which was forecast to make landfall near the Florida panhandle on Thursday, 26 September.

Crew-9 was able to lift off on the first attempt on 28 September 2024 at 17:17:21 UTC (1:17:21 pm EDT, local time at the launch site). It was the first-ever human spaceflight to lift off from Space Launch Complex-40 (SLC-40) at Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. With a launch weather forecast that predicted a 45% chance of violating weather constraints and rain clouds that passed by as the crew boarded the rocket, NASA leaders later remarked that they had "threaded a needle" regarding the weather. After lifting the Dragon and second-stage to an altitude of the rocket's first stage, Booster 1085 returned to the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and touched down at Landing Zone 1, seven minutes and 36 seconds after launch, completing its second flight. The second stage continued to lift the Dragon to an altitude of before separation.

A few hours later, when the second stage was commanded to make a destructive reentry, it experienced an off-nominal deorbit burn, deviating from its planned trajectory. Although it landed safely in the ocean, the impact point was outside the designated target area. SpaceX typically commands its second stages to re-enter the atmosphere and land in the ocean to minimize orbital debris. The off-target landing increased the potential risk of harm, as aircraft and mariners were not instructed to avoid the area. In response, SpaceX announced a temporary grounding of the Falcon 9 rocket while investigating the root cause of the mishap. On 30 September 2024 the Federal Aviation Administration grounded the Falcon 9. An exception was made for the launch of ESA's ''Hera''. The FAA cleared the Falcon 9 to resume flights on 11 October.

Launch attempt summary

''Note: Times are local to the launch site (Eastern Daylight Time).''

Gallery

Notes

References

External links

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{{Orbital launches in 2024

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