NASA commercial cargo provider SpaceX is targeting its 12th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station for 12:31 p.m. EDT Monday, Aug. 14. Coverage will begin on NASA Television and the agency’s website Sunday, Aug. 13, with two briefings.
Loaded with more than 6,400 pounds of research, crew supplies and hardware, the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft will launch on a Falcon 9 rocket. The payloads include crucial materials to directly support several of the more than 250 science and research investigations to be conducted on the orbiting laboratory during Expeditions 52 and 53.
About 10 minutes after launch, Dragon will reach its preliminary orbit and deploy its solar arrays. A carefully choreographed series of thruster firings are scheduled to allow the spacecraft to rendezvous with the space station. NASA astronaut Jack Fischer and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Paolo Nespoli will grapple Dragon using the space station’s robotic arm. It then will be installed on the station’s Harmony module.
Live coverage of the rendezvous and capture will begin at 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 16, on NASA TV, with installation coverage set to begin at 8:30 a.m.
The Dragon spacecraft will spend approximately one month attached to the space station. It will remain until mid-September when the spacecraft will return to Earth with results of earlier experiments, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California.
Media at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida will have the opportunity to participate in special tours and briefings Aug. 11 and 13, as well as view the launch. The deadline for media to apply for accreditation for this launch has passed. For more information about media accreditation, contact Jennifer Horner at 321-867-6598 or jennifer.p.horner@nasa.gov.
Media badges will be issued at the PIDS building located on State Road 3, Merritt Island.
Please Note that RSVPs will be required for the following events:
-L-3 Media Tour
-L-1 Remote Camera Setup (Inside or Outside Pad fence)
-Launch (NASA Causeway or VAB Roof)
When you RSVP please indicate in the subject line your name, affiliation and specific area(s) related to your RSVP. RSVPs must be sent to ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov no later than 4 p.m., Aug. 10.
L-3 Day (Friday, Aug. 11)
Press Site Hours of Operation: 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Badging Hours of Operation: 7:30 – 9 a.m.
Media participating in the L-3 tour will need to be at the Press Site no later than 9:15 a.m., and they will be returned to the press site at 1 p.m.
Media Tour (9:30 a.m. – 1 p.m.)
Space Launch System’s Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage
The Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage (ICPS) is the first segment for NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to arrive at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and is currently in the Space Station Processing Facility. The ICPS will be located at the very top of the SLS, just below the Orion capsule. During Exploration Mission-1, NASA’s first test mission of the SLS rocket and Orion, the ICPS, filled with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, will give Orion the big in-space push needed to fly beyond the Moon before returning to Earth. The ICPS was designed and built by ULA in Decatur, Alabama, and Boeing in Huntsville, Alabama.
Launch Equipment Test Facility
The LETF tests all the launch umbilicals for the Mobile Launcher. This site is a versatile test and development area that supports the entire spectrum of operational programs. It has been upgraded and refurbished to support NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) program, and is used to test a wide variety of large-scale hardware and ground support equipment components. Equipment at the facility can recreate liftoff and operational conditions to test component performance, and can supply cryogenics, hydraulics, electrical, ECS and other commodities to enable “test-as-you-fly.”
L-2 Day (Saturday, Aug. 12)
Press Site is closed.
L-1 Day (Sunday, Aug. 13)
Press Site Hours of Operation: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Badging Hours of Operation: 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
One-on-One Interview Opportunities (noon)
Media will have the opportunity to interview mission experts at the Press Site.
Prelaunch News Conference on NASA TV (2 p.m.)
A prelaunch status briefing will be held at Kennedy’s Press Site TV Auditorium at 2 p.m. and air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website. Media who would like to call in should phone the NASA News Center at 321-867-2468.
Remote Camera Setup
Inside Perimeter (3:15 p.m.): A limited number of news media will be able to establish sound-activated remote cameras to capture the liftoff from inside Launch Complex 39A.
Outside Fence (4 p.m.): All other remote camera photographers will be able to set up cameras outside of the pad perimeter.
“What’s on Board” Science Briefing on NASA TV (3:30 p.m.)
A science, research and technology briefing will air live at 3:30 p.m. on NASA Television and the agency’s website at https://www.nasa.gov/ntv. This briefing is for NASA Social participants and interested media.
L-0 Day (Monday, Aug. 14)
Press Site Hours of Operation: 6 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Badging Hours of Operation: 5 – 6 a.m. and 9:30 – 10:45 a.m.
Pad Photo Opportunity (6:45 – 7:15 a.m.)
Media will need to be at the Press Site no later than 6:15 a.m. to participate.
Launch Viewing (11:30 a.m. – 1:15 p.m.)
News media wanting to view the launch from either the NASA Causeway or the VAB roof (space is limited) need to arrive to the Press Site by 11:30 a.m.
Post-Launch News Conference (2 – 2:30 p.m.)
A post-launch news conference will occur at about 2 p.m. in Kennedy’s Press Site TV Auditorium and air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website. Media who would like to call in should phone the NASA News Center at 321-867-2468.
NASA TV Launch Coverage
NASA TV live coverage will begin at noon. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit https://www.nasa.gov/ntv.
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, -1260 or -7135. On launch day, “mission audio,” the launch conductor’s countdown activities without NASA TV launch commentary, will be carried on 321-867-7135. Launch also will be available on local amateur VHF radio frequency 146.940 MHz heard within Brevard County on the Space Coast.
NASA Web Prelaunch and Launch Coverage
Prelaunch and launch day coverage of the SpaceX CRS-12 flight will be available on the NASA website. Coverage will include live streaming and blog updates beginning at noon as the countdown milestones occur. On-demand streaming video, podcast and photos of the launch will be available shortly after liftoff. For questions about countdown coverage, contact the newsroom at 321-867-2468. You can follow countdown coverage on our launch blog at http://blogs.nasa.gov/spacex.
Post-Launch News Conference on NASA TV
A post-launch news conference will occur at about 2 p.m. in Kennedy’s Press Site TV Auditorium and air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website at https://www.nasa.gov/ntv. Media who would like to call in should phone the NASA News Center at 321-867-2468.
Learn more about the SpaceX CRS-12 mission by going to the mission home page at:
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Amber Philman/Amanda Griffin
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-867-2468
amber.n.philman@nasa.gov/amanda.griffin@nasa.gov
Tabatha Thompson
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
tabatha.t.thompson@nasa.gov