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SpaceX Crew Dragon mock-up sails into Port Canaveral, FL
atop the astronaut recovery ship GO Searcher on Jan. 16, 2019. The capsule is seen
here atop the deck with hoisting crane on Jan. 19 that will pluck it aboard
after Atlantic Ocean splashdowns and return from the ISS. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
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PORT CANAVERAL, FL – A mock-up of SpaceX’s privately built Crew Dragon spaceship sailed into Port Canaveral on a dedicated recovery ship on Jan. 16 after conducting trails at sea as practice demonstrations to prepare the naval team for hoisting real capsules holding NASA astronaut crews on deck after their fiery return from space and splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean.
Seeing the mock up Crew Dragon capsule return to Port Canaveral represents another clearly significant sign that SpaceX and NASA are ramping up efforts to resume launching American astronauts once again to the International Space Station (ISS) from America soil using domestically manufactured rockets and spaceships later this year.
Enjoy our Space UpClose photos of the Crew Dragon mock up taken on Jan. 19 soon after it arrived in port, while still positioned on deck of the ‘GO Searcher’ ocean going recovery ship leased by SpaceX.
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SpaceX Crew Dragon mock-up sails into Port Canaveral, FL
atop the astronaut recovery ship GO Searcher on Jan. 16, 2019. The capsule is seen
here atop the deck with hoisting crane on Jan. 19 that will pluck it aboard
after Atlantic Ocean splashdowns and return from the ISS. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
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‘GO Searcher’ has been upgraded with a crane to enable
recovery of the commercially built SpaceX crew capsule by hoisting the
spaceship from the waters off Florida’s east coast launch base at NASA’s Kennedy
Space Center under a normal scenario.
A helipad and medical treatment facility were also installed on board as part of extensive modifications to the ship.
A helipad and medical treatment facility were also installed on board as part of extensive modifications to the ship.
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SpaceX Crew Dragon mock-up sails into Port Canaveral, FL
atop the astronaut recovery ship GO Searcher on Jan. 16, 2019. The capsule is seen
here atop the deck with hoisting crane on Jan. 19 that will pluck it aboard
after Atlantic Ocean splashdowns and return from the ISS. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
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“When astronauts splash down into the ocean
after their journey to the International Space Station on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon
spacecraft, recovery teams must be able to transport them to land quickly,” according
to NASA officials.
“NASA and SpaceX doctors will work together
to evaluate the crew onboard the vessel. From there, GO Searcher will head for
Cape Canaveral, Florida, where SpaceX teams will take the astronauts to a
nearby airport for transport back to Houston.”
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SpaceX has outfitted its Crew Dragon recovery
ship GO Searcher with a helipad and medical treatment facility and practiced
helicopter landings and patient loading rehearsals on the ship for astronauts
returning from the ISS. Credit: SpaceX
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Crew Dragon was built under contract to NASA as part of the
agency’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP) initiative to restore America’s
capability to launch astronauts to the ISS and end our sole reliance on the
Russian Soyuz crew capsule for the first time since NASA’s space shuttle
orbiters were retired more than seven years ago in 2011.
Back in November 2018 SpaceX
“completed helicopter
landing and patient loading rehearsals on the ship, practicing how the
helicopter will pick up astronauts and fly them to a nearby hospital.”
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SpaceX has outfitted its Crew Dragon recovery
ship GO Searcher with a helipad and medical treatment facility and practiced
helicopter landings and patient loading rehearsals on the ship for astronauts
returning from the ISS. Credit: SpaceX
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The recovery and medical team will include doctors
and paramedics “to provide the best possible care to astronauts on the ship,
in-flight, and get them safely to a hospital” if needed.
“NASA and SpaceX doctors will work together
to evaluate the crew onboard the vessel. From there, GO Searcher will head for Cape Canaveral, Florida where SpaceX teams will take the astronauts to a nearby airport for transport back to Houston."
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Over head view of Port Canaveral Fl, after SpaceX Crew
Dragon mock-up arrives into port atop the astronaut recovery ship GO Searcher on Jan. 16, 2019. The capsule is seen here atop the deck with hoisting
crane on Jan. 19. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com
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The ‘GO’ fleet is currently used by SpaceX to retrieve droneship
landed Falcon 9 first stage boosters and haul them back to Port Canaveral from
offshore in the Atlantic Ocean.
Meanwhile amidst the US government shutdown SpaceX is continuing
preparations for the first uncrewed launch of Crew Dragon on the Demo-1 (DM-1)
mission from Launch Complex 39A at the Kenne3dy Space Center.
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| VP Mike Pence tours the SpaceX launch processing facility with SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell to visit the Crew Dragon and Falcon 9 rocket on Dec. 18, 2018. Credit: SpaceX |
Crews rolled out the rocket to the pad and raised it
vertical earlier this month.
NASA and SpaceX are targeting mid-February for the DM-1
launch.
SpaceX will have to accomplish all this critical work and
do it safely for NASA with significantly fewer staff after the company
announced a 10% reduction in workforce earlier this month – as I reported here.
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| Launch of SpaceX CRS-16 Cargo Dragon in Dec 2018 to the ISS from Cape Canaveral, FL. Credit: Ken Kremer/kenkremer.com/spaceupclose.com |
Here’s a link to my Fox News 35 Orlando
interview and commentary about the negative impact of the US Government
shutdown on NASA- as seen on Jan 8:
Watch for Ken’s
continuing onsite coverage of NASA, SpaceX, ULA, Boeing, Lockheed Martin,
Northrop Grumman and more space and mission reports direct from the Kennedy Space
Center, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida and Wallops Flight Facility,
Virginia.
Stay tuned here for Ken's continuing Earth and Planetary science
and human spaceflight news: www.kenkremer.com –www.spaceupclose.com – twitter
@ken_kremer – email: ken at kenkremer.com
Dr. Kremer is a research scientist,
journalist and photographer based in the KSC area.
………….
Ken’s photos are for sale and he is available for lectures and outreach events
Ken’s photos are for sale and he is available for lectures and outreach events
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