SpaceX's 30th Cargo Resupply Mission: Pre-Launch | International Space Station

SpaceX's 30th Cargo Resupply Mission: Pre-Launch | International Space Station

New research and technology demonstrations for NASA are set to launch aboard the agency’s SpaceX 30th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station. Launch is targeted for 4:55 p.m. EDT Thursday, March 21, 2024, lifting off from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral,  Florida. There is currently a 90% chance of favorable weather conditions at the launch pad for liftoff.

NASA and international partners are launching scientific investigations on the 30th SpaceX commercial resupply services mission, including tests of technologies to monitor sea ice, automate 3D mapping, and to create nanoparticle solar cells. 

The Dragon cargo craft will also deliver food and supplies as well as a set of sensors for the free-flying Astrobee robots and a new botany experiment to examine how two types of grass capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. 

Dragon will autonomously dock to the zenith port of the Harmony module at 7:30 a.m. Saturday, March 23. 

Read more about some of the research making the journey to the orbiting laboratory: 

https://go.nasa.gov/3SS9mhA

Image Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)

Image Date: March 19, 2024

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