SpaceX and NASA are targeting no earlier than Saturday, September 28 due to Tropical Storm Helene, for Falcon 9’s launch of Dragon’s ninth operational human spaceflight mission (Crew-9) to the International Space Station from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The instantaneous launch is at 1:17 p.m. ET, with a backup opportunity available on Sunday, September 29 at 12:54 p.m. ET if needed.
A live webcast of this mission will begin about one hour prior to liftoff, which you can watch here and on X @SpaceX. You can also watch the webcast on the new X TV app.
The Dragon spacecraft supporting this mission previously flew the Crew-4, Ax-2, and Ax-3 missions to and from the International Space Station. Following stage separation, Falcon 9’s first stage will land on Landing Zone 1 (LZ-1) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
During their time on the orbiting laboratory, the crew will conduct over 200 scientific experiments and technology demonstrations to prepare for human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit and to benefit humanity on Earth.
Col. Tyler N. Hague was selected by NASA as an astronaut in 2013. The Kansas native earned a Bachelor of Science in astronautical engineering from the United States Air Force Academy in 1998, and a Master of Science in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2000.
Selected as an astronaut by NASA in 2013, Hague completed astronaut candidate training in July 2015. During his first mission to the International Space Station in 2018, he and his crewmate Alexey Ovchinin, of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, experienced a catastrophic rocket booster malfunction that resulted in the launch abort of their Soyuz MS-10.
In 2019, Hague launched on Soyuz MS-12 and served as Flight Engineer on the International Space Station for 203 days during Expedition 59 and 60. During 2020-2022, Hague completed a developmental rotation with the United States Space Force, serving as the new military service’s Director of Test and Evaluation at The Pentagon in Washington D.C.
He returned to NASA in August 2022 to work on the Boeing Starliner Program. Hague is currently training for his second spaceflight, where he will serve as commander for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission.
Aleksandr Vladimirovich Gorbunov served as a Lieutenant of the Air Force of the Aerospace Forces of the Russian Armed Forces and worked as an engineer for Energia, supporting cargo spacecraft launches.
He was selected to join the Roscosmos Cosmonaut Corps in 2018. He is scheduled to make his first flight to space on SpaceX Crew-9 in September 2024 and will serve as a flight engineer on the International Space Station during Expedition 72.