WASHINGTON, April 29,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA will provide live
coverage of prelaunch and launch activities for the agency's Boeing
Crew Flight Test, which will carry NASA astronauts Butch
Wilmore and Suni Williams to and from the International
Space Station.
Launch of the ULA (United Launch Alliance) Atlas V rocket and
Boeing Starliner spacecraft is targeted for 10:34 p.m. EDT Monday, May 6, from Space Launch
Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
The flight test will carry Wilmore and Williams to the
space station for about a week to test the Starliner spacecraft and
its subsystems before NASA certifies the transportation system for
rotational missions to the orbiting laboratory for the agency's
Commercial Crew Program.
Starliner will dock to the forward-facing port of the station's
Harmony module at 12:48 a.m.,
Wednesday, May 8.
The deadline for media accreditation for in-person coverage of
this launch has passed. The agency's media credentialing policy is
available online. For questions about media accreditation, please
email: ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov.
NASA's mission coverage is as follows (all times Eastern and
subject to change based on real-time operations):
Wednesday, May
1
1:30 p.m. – Virtual
news conference at Kennedy with the flight test astronauts:
- NASA astronaut Butch
Wilmore
- NASA astronaut Suni
Williams
Coverage of the virtual news conference will stream live on
NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency's
website.
Media may ask questions via phone only. For the dial-in number
and passcode, please contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than
12:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 1, at:
ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.
Friday, May 3
12:30 p.m. – Prelaunch news
conference at Kennedy (no earlier than one hour after completion of
the Launch Readiness Review) with the following participants:
- NASA Administrator Bill
Nelson
- Steve Stich, manager, NASA's
Commercial Crew Program
- Dana Weigel, manager, NASA's
International Space Station Program
- Emily Nelson, chief flight
director, NASA
- Jennifer Buchli, chief
scientist, NASA's International Space Station Program
- Mark Nappi, vice president and
program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing
- Gary Wentz, vice president,
Government and Commercial Programs, ULA
- Brian Cizek, launch weather
officer, 45th Weather Squadron, Cape Canaveral Space Force
Station
Coverage of the prelaunch news conference will stream live on
NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency's
website.
Media may ask questions in person and via phone. Limited
auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For
the dial-in number and passcode, media should contact the Kennedy
newsroom no later than 11:30 a.m.,
Friday, May 3, at
ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.
3:30 p.m. – NASA Social panel live
stream event at Kennedy with the following participants:
- Ian Kappes, deputy launch
vehicle office manager, NASA's Commercial Crew Program
- Amy Comeau Denker, Starliner
associate chief engineer, Boeing
- Caleb Weiss, system engineering
and test leader, ULA
- Jennifer Buchli, chief
scientist, NASA's International Space Station Program
Coverage of the panel live stream event will stream live at
@NASAKennedy on YouTube, @NASAKennedy on X, and
@NASAKennedy on Facebook. Members of the public may ask
questions online by posting questions to the YouTube, X, and
Facebook livestreams using #AskNASA.
Monday, May
6
6:30 p.m. – Launch
coverage begins on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube,
and the agency's website.
10:34 p.m. – Launch
Launch coverage on NASA+ will end shortly after Starliner
orbital insertion. NASA Television will provide continuous
coverage leading up to docking and through hatch opening and
welcome remarks.
Tuesday, May
7
12 a.m. – Postlaunch
news conference with the following participants:
- NASA Deputy Administrator Pam
Melroy
- Ken Bowersox, associate
administrator, NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate
- Steve Stich, manager, NASA's
Commercial Crew Program
- Dana Weigel, manager, NASA's
International Space Station Program
- Mark Nappi, vice president and
program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing
- Gary Wentz, vice president,
Government and Commercial Programs, ULA
Coverage of the postlaunch news conference will air live on
NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the
agency's website.
NASA+ will resume coverage and NASA Television's media channel
will break from in-orbit coverage to carry the postlaunch news
conference. Mission operational coverage will continue on NASA
Television's public channel and the agency's website. Once the
postlaunch news conference is complete, NASA+ coverage will end,
and mission coverage will continue on both NASA channels.
Media may ask questions in person and via phone. Limited
auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For
the dial-in number and passcode, media should contact the Kennedy
newsroom no later than 10:30 p.m.,
Monday, May 6, at
ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.
10:15 p.m. – Arrival coverage
resumes on NASA+, the NASA app, and YouTube, and continues on NASA
Television and the agency's website.
Wednesday, May 8
12:48 a.m. – Targeted docking to the
forward-facing port of the station's Harmony module
2:35 a.m. – Hatch opening
3:15 a.m. – Welcome remarks
4:15 a.m. – Post-docking news
conference at Johnson with the following participants:
- NASA Associate Administrator Jim
Free
- Steve Stich, manager, NASA's
Commercial Crew Program
- Dana Weigel, manager, NASA's
International Space Station Program
- Mark Nappi, vice president and
program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing
Coverage of the post-docking news conference will air live on
NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency's
website.
All times are estimates and could be adjusted based on
operations after launch. Follow the space station blog for the
most up-to-date operations information.
Audio Only Coverage
Audio only of the news conferences
and launch coverage will be carried on the NASA "V" circuits, which
may be accessed by dialing 321-867-1220, -1240 or -7135. On launch
day, "mission audio," countdown activities without NASA Television
launch commentary, will be carried on 321-867-7135.
Launch audio also will be available on Launch Information
Service and Amateur Television System's VHF radio frequency 146.940
MHz and KSC Amateur Radio Club's UHF radio frequency 444.925 MHz,
FM mode, heard within Brevard
County on the Space Coast.
Live Video Coverage Prior to Launch
NASA will provide
a live video feed of Space Launch Complex-41 approximately 48 hours
prior to the planned liftoff of the mission. Pending unlikely
technical issues, the feed will be uninterrupted until the
prelaunch broadcast begins on NASA Television, approximately four
hours prior to launch. Once the feed is live, find it
here: http://youtube.com/kscnewsroom.
NASA Website Launch Coverage
Launch day coverage of
the mission will be available on the agency's website. Coverage
will include live streaming and blog updates beginning no earlier
than 6:30 p.m., May 6 as the countdown milestones occur.
On-demand streaming video and photos of the launch will be
available shortly after liftoff.
For questions about countdown coverage, contact the Kennedy
newsroom at 321-867-2468. Follow countdown coverage on the
commercial crew or the Crew Flight Test blog.
Attend the Launch Virtually
Members of the public can
register to attend this launch virtually. NASA's virtual guest
program for this mission also includes curated launch resources,
notifications about related opportunities or changes, and a stamp
for the NASA virtual guest passport following launch.
Watch and Engage on Social Media
Let people know
you're following the mission on X, Facebook, and Instagram by using
the hashtags #Starliner and #NASASocial. You can also stay
connected by following and tagging these accounts:
X: @NASA, @NASAKennedy, @NASASocial, @Space_Station,
@ISS_Research, @ISS National Lab, @BoeingSpace,
@Commercial_Crew
Facebook: NASA, NASAKennedy, ISS, ISS National Lab
Instagram: @NASA, @NASAKennedy, @ISS,
@ISSNationalLab
Coverage en Espanol
Did you know NASA has a Spanish
section called NASA en Espanol? Check out NASA en Espanol on X,
Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for additional mission
coverage.
Para obtener información sobre cobertura en español en el
Centro Espacial Kennedy o si desea solicitar entrevistas en
español, comuníquese con Antonia Jaramillo:
321-501-8425; antonia.jaramillobotero@nasa.gov; o
Messod Bendayan: 256-930-1371;
messod.c.bendayan@nasa.gov.
NASA's Commercial Crew Program has delivered on its goal of
safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the
International Space Station from the
United States through a partnership with American private
industry. This partnership is changing the arc of human spaceflight
history by opening access to low-Earth orbit and the International
Space Station to more people, science, and commercial
opportunities. The space station remains the springboard to NASA's
next great leap in space exploration, including future missions to
the Moon and, eventually, to Mars.
For NASA's launch blog and more information about the mission,
visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew
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SOURCE NASA