Mission Control Operations

Behind-the-scenes at a mission control center, showing teams managing simulations and launch procedures with multiple screens and focused expressions.

Space Launch System and Orion launch team engineers and managers monitor operations from their console in Firing Room 1 at the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Control Center during a countdown simulation for Exploration Mission 1. It was the agency's first simulation of a portion of the countdown for the first launch of a Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft that will eventually take astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit to destinations such as the Moon and Mars.

JSC2001-E-21337 (12 July 2001) --- Rob Navias (right), at the Public Affairs Officer (PAO) console in Houston's Mission Control Center (MCC), awaits to do his commentary as he views the firing of Space Shuttle Atlantis' main engines on his monitor just seconds before launch and the beginning of the STS-104 mission. Daniel K. Carpenter, director of the Public Affairs Office, looks on.

The Orion team reviews the launch procedure in Building AE at Cape Canaveral Air Force Stationahead of the launch of Orion on Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) on Dec. 4, 2014. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

NASA, Boeing and United Launch Alliance (ULA) conduct a simulation of launch procedures for Boeings Orbital Test Flight, the first uncrewed test of the companys CST-100 Starliner and a ULA Atlas V rocket. Launch teams participated in the simulation across the country, including inside the Launch Vehicle Data Center at Hangar AE at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The Starliner will launch on an Atlas V rocket to the International Space Station as part of NASAs Commercial Crew Program.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Members of the Launch Services Program team monitor systems on the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from the Launch Vehicle Data Center in Hangar AE on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida as the countdown progresses smoothly to launch.Liftoff of NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN, or MAVEN, spacecraft aboard the Atlas V from Space Launch Complex 41 was on schedule at 1:28 p.m. EST Nov. 18 at the opening of a two-hour launch window. After a 10-month journey to the Red Planet, MAVEN will study its upper atmosphere in unprecedented detail from orbit above the planet. Built by Lockheed Martin in Littleton, Colo., MAVEN will arrive at Mars in September 2014 and will be inserted into an elliptical orbit with a high point of 3,900 miles, swooping down to as close as 93 miles above the planet's surface.

Melissa Batis (left), an operations project engineer, and John Mills, a test project engineer at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, participate in a launch countdown simulation inside Firing Room 1 in the Launch Control Center on Feb. 3, 2020. Under the leadership of Artemis I Launch Director Charlie Blackwell-Thompson, a team of nearly 100 engineers from Orion, Space Launch System (SLS) and NASAs Exploration Ground Systems came together to work through a series of simulated challenges, as well as a final countdown procedure. During these exercises, different issues were introduced to familiarize the team with launch day operations, while providing them with an opportunity to practice how they would handle those issues in real-time. Artemis I will be the first integrated test flight of the Orion spacecraft and SLS rocket - the system that will ultimately land the first woman and the next man on the Moon.

STS-131 Flight Controllers on console during the launch of Discovery on STS-131. Photo Date: April 5, 2010. Location: Building 30 south - WFCR.

Members of the Artemis 1 launch team, including personnel with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) and Jacobs Test and Operations Contract (TOSC), participate in validation testing inside Firing Room 1 in the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 11, 2019.The simulation was designed to validate the firing room consoles and communications systems, as well as the new Spaceport Command and Control System (SCCS), which will operate, monitor and coordinate ground equipment in preparation for Artemis 1, the uncrewed first flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft.

Norm Knight, deputy director of Flight Operations at NASA's Johnson Space Center is seen durring the countdown of the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 mission with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard, Saturday, May 30, 2020, in firing room four of the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 mission is the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. The test flight serves as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceXs crew transportation system. Behnken and Hurley launched at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on an American rocket from American soil to low-Earth orbit for the first time sin

Space Launch System and Orion launch team engineers and managers monitor operations from their console in Firing Room 1 at the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Control Center during a countdown simulation for Exploration Mission 1. It was the agency's first simulation of a portion of the countdown for the first launch of a Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft that will eventually take astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit to destinations such as the Moon and Mars.

Orion teams complete a connectivity test in preparation for Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) in the Mission Control Center at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Jan. 30, 2011. Part of Batch image transfer from Flickr.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United Space Alliance Safety Engineer Dwayne Thompson, left, and NASA Safety Engineer Dallas McCarter rehearse procedures for the liftoff of space shuttle Discovery's final mission with other STS-133 launch team members in Firing Room 4. The team at Kennedy also participated in launch simulations with personnel at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.Discovery's next launch opportunity to the International Space Station on the STS-133 mission is planned for no earlier than Feb. 24.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- On Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the wiring is checked and validated before the tanking test on space shuttle Atlantis' external tank set for Dec. 18. The test wiring has been spliced into an electrical harness in the aft main engine compartment connected with the engine cut-off, or ECO, sensor system. The attached wiring leads to the interior of the mobile launcher platform where the time domain reflectometry, or TDR, test equipment is located.

JSC2002-E-34622 (21 August 2002) --- Astronaut David A. Wolf, STS-112 mission specialist, uses the virtual reality lab at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) to train for his duties aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis. This type of computer interface paired with virtual reality training hardware and software helps to prepare the entire team for dealing with ISS elements.

S98-05074 (8 Apr. 1998) --- Astronaut Jerry L. Ross, assigned as a mission specialist for the mission, uses special gear and software to train for his duties aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour. This type virtual reality training supplements practice for each of the assigned space-walking astronauts -- Ross and James H. Newman -- during which they wear a helmet and special gloves to look at computer displays simulating actual movements around the various locations on the early International Space Station (ISS) hardware with which they'll be working. One of those elements will be the Functional Cargo Block (FGB), which will have been launched a couple of weeks prior to STS-88. Once the FGB is captured using the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) of the Endeavour, astronaut Nancy J. Currie will maneuver the robot arm to dock the FGB to the conical mating adapter at the top of Node 1, to be carried in the Shuttle's cargo bay. In ensuing days, three space walks by Ross and Newman will be p

JSC2001-E-25519 (22 August 2001) --- Astronauts James M. Kelly and Kenneth D. Cockrell, both STS-105 spacecraft communicators (CAPCOM), watch the large screens from their consoles in the shuttle flight control room (WFCR) in Houstons Mission Control Center (MCC). At the time this photo was taken the Space Shuttle Discovery was about to land at Kennedy Space Center, Florida, to mark the end of a successful mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

Liquid Oxygen Systems Engineer Quinten Jones, left and Liquid Oxygen Systems Engineer Andrew "Kody" Smitherman, both of Jacobs, monitor operation from his position in Firing Room 1 at the Kennedy Space Center's Launch Control Center during a countdown simulation for Exploration Mission 1. It was the agency's first simulation of a portion of the countdown for the first launch of a Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft that will eventually take astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit to destinations such as the Moon and Mars.

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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Joe Mounts, with Boeing, monitors the Payload Test and Checkout System for the Human Research Facility (HRF) Rack -2 payload. The HRF-2 is scheduled to fly on Return to Flight Space Shuttle mission STS-114. The HRF-2 will deliver additional biomedical instrumentation and research capability to the International Space Station. HRF Rack 1 contains an ultrasound unit and gas analyzer system and has been operational in the U.S. Lab since May 2001. HRF-2 will also be installed in the U. S. Lab and will provide structural, power, thermal, command and data handling, and communication and tracking interfaces between the HRF biomedical instrumentation and the U. S. Lab.

Teams at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center help monitor launch conditions for the Crew 1 mission from the Huntsville Operations Support Center in Huntsville, Alabama. SpaceX will launch a Falcon 9 rocket carrying NASA astronauts aboard the companys Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station on Nov. 14, 2020. The Marshall team is supporting flight control teams working with NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, and SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, as they monitor the different phases of the upcoming mission. Engineers and technicians at Marshall will use headsets and loops to communicate with the multiple locations on console for the launch. The Crew 1 flight is part of NASAs Commercial Crew Program. The Crew 1 astronauts will arrive at the space station for docking a short time later at 4:20 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 15 to join Expedition 64 for a six-month science mission.

Members of the Artemis I launch team monitor data at their consoles inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a cryogenic propellant tanking demonstration on Sept. 21, 2022. The first in a series of increasingly complex missions, Artemis I will provide a foundation for human deep space exploration and demonstrate our commitment and capability to extend human presence to the Moon and beyond. The primary goal of Artemis I is to thoroughly test the integrated systems before crewed missions by operating the spacecraft in a deep space environment, testing Orions heat shield, and recovering the crew module after reentry, descent, and splashdown.

Mission managers, from left, NASA Ares I-X Assistant Launch Director Pete Nickolenko, Ground Operations Manager Philip "Pepper" Phillips, Ares I-X Launch Director Ed Mango, and Constellation Program manager Jeff Hanley review the latest weather radar from Firing Room One of the Launch Control Center (LCC) at the Kennedy Space Center during the launch countdown of the Ares I-X rocket in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009. The flight test of Ares I-X will provide NASA with an early opportunity to test and prove flight characteristics, hardware, facilities and ground operations associated with the Ares I.

Artemis II Terminal Count Simulation #1. Members of the Artemis II launch team, including personnel with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems and contractor Jacobs, monitor activities during the Artemis II terminal countdown simulation inside Firing Room 1 in the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023. This is part of a series of simulations to help the team prepare for the launch of Artemis II, the first mission with astronauts under Artemis that will test and check out all of the Orion spacecrafts systems needed for future crewed missions.

JSC2005-E-21191 (7 June 2005) --- Astronaut Steven G. MacLean, STS-115 mission specialist representing the Canadian Space Agency, uses the virtual reality lab at the Johnson Space Center to train for his duties aboard the space shuttle. This type of computer interface, paired with virtual reality training hardware and software, helps to prepare the entire team for dealing with space station elements.

MSL - ASOC Control Room

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Engineers in the Morpheus Control Room monitor conditions in preparation for the first free flight test at night of NASA's Project Morpheus prototype lander from a launch pad at the north end of the Shuttle Landing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The 98-second test began at 10:02 p.m. EDT with the Morpheus lander launching from the ground over a flame trench and ascending more than 800 feet. The vehicle, with its autonomous landing and hazard avoidance technology, or ALHAT sensors, surveyed the hazard field to determine safe landing sites. Morpheus then flew forward and downward covering approximately 1,300 feet while performing a 78-foot divert to simulate a hazard avoidance maneuver. The lander then descended and landed on a dedicated pad inside the test field. Project Morpheus tests NASAs ALHAT and an engine that runs on liquid oxygen and methane, which are green propellants. These new capabilities could be used in future efforts to deliv

Zeb Scoville, NASA's chief flight director, monitors the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on the Crew-4 mission with NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Robert Hines, Jessica Watkins, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti onboard, Wednesday, April 27, 2022, in firing room four of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-4 mission is the fourth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Lindgren, Hines, Watkins, and Cristoforetti launched at 3:52 a.m. ET, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center to begin a six month mission onboard the International Space Station.

JSC2010-E-043662 (25 March 2010) --- NASA astronauts Gregory H. Johnson, STS-134 pilot; and Shannon Walker, Expedition 24/25 flight engineer, use the virtual reality lab in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA's Johnson Space Center to train for some of their duties aboard the space shuttle and space station. This type of computer interface, paired with virtual reality training hardware and software, helps to prepare crew members for dealing with space station elements.

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, launch team members monitor the countdown to the launch of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-135 mission to the International Space Station.Atlantis with its crew of four; Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, lifted off at 11:29 a.m. EDT on July 8, 2011 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts for the station. Atlantis also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mission of NASA's Sp

As part of the joint team that will launch Boeings CST-100 Starliner on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket in Boeings Orbital Flight Test (OFT), Boeing Spacecraft Mission Director LeRoy Cain participated in a successful Integrated Crew Exercise on Feb. 12. NASA, ULA, Boeing and Department of Defense personnel executed a mock countdown that practiced fueling the rocket and operating on the unique launch day timeline that features a four-hour built-in hold at the T-minus 4 minute mark. OFT is Boeings uncrewed flight test of Starliner and part of NASAs Commercial Crew Program, which will return human spaceflight launches into low-Earth orbit from U.S. soil.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - In the Orbiter Processing Facility, Bill Prosser (left) and Eric Madaras, NASA-Langley Research Center, conduct impulse tests on the right wing leading edge (WLE) of Space Shuttle Endeavour. The tests monitor how sound impulses propagate through the WLE area. The data collected will be analyzed to explore the possibility of adding new instrumentation to the wing that could automatically detect debris or micrometeroid impacts on the Shuttle while in flight. The study is part of the initiative ongoing at KSC and around the agency to return the orbiter fleet to flight status.

NASA GPM Systems team member Tim Grunner, left, and NASA GPM Test Conductor John Pope talk during an all-day launch simulation for the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory at the Spacecraft Test and Assembly Building 2 (STA2), Saturday, Feb. 22, 2014, Tanegashima Space Center (TNSC), Tanegashima Island, Japan. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) plans to launch an H-IIA rocket carrying the GPM Core Observatory on Feb. 28, 2014. The NASA-JAXA GPM spacecraft will collect information that unifies data from an international network of existing and future satellites to map global rainfall and snowfall every three hours.

Norm Knight, deputy director of Flight Operations at NASA's Johnson Space Center, is seen as he monitors the countdown during a dress rehearsal in preparation for the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 mission with NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley onboard, Saturday, May 23, 2020, in firing room four of the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 mission is the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. The test flight serves as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceXs crew transportation system. Behnken and Hurley are scheduled to launch at 4:33 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, May 27, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on an American ro

Engineers monitor data during vibration testing of a cruise motor controller for the X-57 Maxwell, NASAs first all-electric X-plane. Attached to a table at NASA Armstrong Flight Research Centers environmental lab, the cruise motor controller is exposed to specific levels of vibration, allowing NASA to examine the structural integrity of the hardware. Engineers, meanwhile, monitored data, including waveforms of electrical current, and recorded readings.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Bart Pannullo, the vehicle processing engineer for space shuttle Discovery, sits at his console in Firing Room 4 along with other STS-133 launch team members to rehearse procedures for the liftoff of Discovery's final mission. The team at Kennedy also participated in launch simulations with personnel at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.Discovery's next launch opportunity to the International Space Station on the STS-133 mission is planned for no earlier than Feb. 24.

JSC2009-E-120491 (14 May 2009) --- Flight director Tony Ceccacci (right); along with astronauts Dan Burbank (center) and Alan Poindexter, STS-125 spacecraft communicators (CAPCOM), watch the big screens from their consoles in the space shuttle flight control room in the Mission Control Center at NASA's Johnson Space Center during flight day four activities.

Global Sentinel participants from work together to solve challenging space scenarios during Global Sentinel 2024 at Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif., Feb. 13, 2024. USSPACECOM and representatives from partner nations come together each year at Global Sentinel to promote cooperation and safe, secure space operations. In addition to the United states, partner nations that attended this year included Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Columbia, Germany, Spain, Finland, France, United Kingdom, Italy, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Thailand and Ukraine. Space Force

PHOTO DATE: 04-10-09LOCATION: NBL - Pool Topside and Control RoomSUBJECT: STS-129 crew members Michael Foreman and Robert Satcher during STS-129 ULF3 EVA 1 92027 training. Photograph preparations, getting in suit, working with suit techs, being lowered into water, other crew members in control room

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, launch team members monitor the countdown to the launch of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-135 mission to the International Space Station. Seen here are Assistant Launch Director Pete Nickolenko (background) Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach and Payloads Launch Manager and Deputy Director of ISS and Spacecraft Processing at Kennedy, Bill Dowdell.Atlantis with its crew of four; Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, lifted off at 11:29 a.m. EDT on July 8, 2011 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts for the station. Atlantis also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA bette

NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 Launch. Ken Bowersox, associate administrator for NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate, monitors the countdown of the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov onboard, Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023, in SpaceXs Launch and Landing Control Center in HangerX at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission is the first crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov launched at 3:27 a.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

While NASAs F/A-18 goes supersonic off the coast, a team of researchers monitor the flight and operate multiple sound monitor stations around Galveston and its surrounding area. This allows NASA to obtain accurate sound level data, which gets matched to community response data.

JSC2002-E-08157 (1 March 2002) --- Astronaut Kent V. Rominger (seated), and LeRoy Cain are photographed at the Mission Operation Directorate (MOD) console in the shuttle flight control room (WFCR) in Houston's Mission Control Center (MCC). Several hundred miles away in Florida, the STS-109 crewmembers were awaiting countdown in the crew cabin of the Space Shuttle Columbia on the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). As soon as the vehicle cleared the tower in Florida, the Houston-based team of flight controllers took over the ground control of the mission. Rominger is the Deputy Director of the Flight Crew Operations Directorate (FCOD) and was the STS-109 FCOD management representative in the MCC. Cain was the Weather Flight Director for the missions ascent phase, coordinating weather issues for lead Ascent Flight Director John Shannon (out of frame).

Alex Chin, Samson Truong and Mei Franz prepare for a flight of the remotely piloted X-56A

JSC2001-E-39082 (18 October 2001) --- Cosmonaut Valeri G. Korzun (left), Expedition Five mission commander, and astronaut Carl E. Walz, Expedition Four flight engineer, use the virtual reality lab at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) to train for their duties on the International Space Station (ISS). This type of computer interface paired with virtual reality training hardware and software helps the entire team for dealing with ISS elements. Korzun represents Rosaviakosmos.

JSC2001-00751 (15 March 2001) --- Astronaut Scott J. Horowitz, STS-105 mission commander, uses the virtual reality lab at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) to train for his duties aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery. This type of computer interface paired with virtual reality training hardware and software helps to prepare the entire team for dealing with International Space Station (ISS) elements.

Crew Module Water Landing Model Assent Test site photos at Aberdeen Test Center (Aberdeen, MD)

NASA mission controllers, engineers, pilots and communications specialists in the mission control room monitor the supersonic research flight off the coast of Galveston, as part of the QSF18 flight series. The flight operations crew tracks the status of the flights, maintains communications with the aircraft, communicates with U.S. Coast Guard, and coordinates community feedback data.

Jonathan Poe, a computer network technician IV, works in the computer staging area to prepare computers for deployment to users Oct. 5, 2022, at Arnold Air Force Base, Tennessee.

Steve Stich, deputy manager of NASAs Commercial Crew Program, monitors the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on the Demo-2 mission with NASA astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken onboard, Saturday, May 30, 2020, in firing room four of the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Demo-2 mission is the first launch with astronauts of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. The test flight serves as an end-to-end demonstration of SpaceXs crew transportation system. Behnken and Hurley launched at 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. A new era of human spaceflight is set to begin as American astronauts once again launch on an American rocket from American soil to low-Earth orbit for the first time since the conclusion of the Space Shuttle Program in 2

S98-05076 (8 Apr. 1998) --- Astronaut Jerry L. Ross, assigned as a mission specialist for the mission, uses special gear and software to train for his duties aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour. This type virtual reality training supplements practice for each of the assigned space-walking astronauts -- Ross and James H. Newman -- during which they wear a helmet and special gloves to look at computer displays simulating actual movements around the various locations on the early International Space Station (ISS) hardware with which they'll be working. One of those elements will be the Functional Cargo Block (FGB), which will have been launched a couple of weeks prior to STS-88. Once the FGB is captured using the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) of the Endeavour, astronaut Nancy J. Currie will maneuver the robot arm to dock the FGB to the conical mating adapter at the top of Node 1, to be carried in the Shuttle's cargo bay. In ensuing days, three space walks by Ross and Newman will be p

Ken Schrock and teams at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center help monitor launch conditions for the Demo-2 mission from the Huntsville Operations Support Center, HOSC.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Japanese astronauts and other personnel in the Space Station Processing Facility observe sensors during a Multi-Equipment Interface Test (MEIT) on the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). The National Space Development Agency of Japan (NASDA) developed the laboratory at the Tsukuba Space Center near Tokyo. It is the first element, named "Kibo" (Hope), to be delivered to KSC. The JEM is Japan's primary contribution to the Station. It will enhance the unique research capabilities of the orbiting complex by providing an additional environment for astronauts to conduct science experiments.

NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations William Gerstenmaier points to one the monitors in Firing Room Four of the Launch Control Center (LCC) as NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, right, and other NASA managers look on during the launch of the space shuttle Endeavour (STS-134), Monday, May 16, 2011, at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. During the mission, Endeavour and the STS-134 crew will deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) and spare parts including two S-band communications antennas, a high-pressure gas tank and additional spare parts for Dextre.

JSC2010-E-121056 (27 Aug. 2010) --- NASA astronaut Gregory H. Johnson, STS-134 pilot, uses the virtual reality lab in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA's Johnson Space Center to train for some of his duties aboard the space shuttle and space station. This type of computer interface, paired with virtual reality training hardware and software, helps to prepare crew members for dealing with space station elements.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Hangar AE Mission Director's Center at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, NASA and contractor managers and engineers monitor progress of the countdown for the launch the agency's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite, or TDRS-L, spacecraft atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The TDRS-L spacecraft is the second of three new satellites designed to ensure vital operational continuity for NASA by expanding the lifespan of the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System TDRSS fleet, which consists of eight satellites in geosynchronous orbit. The spacecraft provide tracking, telemetry, command and high bandwidth data return services for numerous science and human exploration missions orbiting Earth. These include NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station. TDRS-L has a high-performance solar panel designed for more spacecraft power to meet the growing S-band communications requirements. TDRSS is one of NASA Space Communication

JSC2010-E-043677 (25 March 2010) --- NASA astronaut Andrew Feustel, STS-134 mission specialist, uses the virtual reality lab in the Space Vehicle Mock-up Facility at NASA's Johnson Space Center to train for some of his duties aboard the space shuttle and space station. This type of computer interface, paired with virtual reality training hardware and software, helps to prepare crew members for dealing with space station elements.

Photo Date: 7-8-2011Subject: STS135 flight controllers on console during last shuttle missionLocation: B. 30S WFCR and SMG

PHOTO DATE: 05-14-10LOCATION: Bldg. 30 south - WFCRSUBJECT: STS-132/ULF4 WFCR Flight Controllers on Console During Launch with Flight Director Richard Jones

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach celebrates in Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida after the successful launch of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-132 mission to the International Space Station. Launch was on time at 2 20 p.m. EDT. STS-132 is the 132nd shuttle flight, the 32nd for Atlantis and the 34th shuttle mission dedicated to station assembly and maintenance.

STS122-S-038 (7 Feb. 2008) --- Launch Director Doug Lyons monitors the weather and shuttle systems prior to the launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-122) from the Launch Control Center Feb. 7, 2008, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The Shuttle lifted off from launch pad 39A at 2:45 p.m. (EST ).

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In the Firing Room at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach congratulates the mission management team for the successful launch of space shuttle Atlantis. Liftoff was on time at 2:01 p.m. EDT. Atlantis' 11-day flight will include five spacewalks to refurbish and upgrade the telescope with state-of-the-art science instruments that will expand Hubble's capabilities and extend its operational lifespan through at least 2014. The payload includes a Wide Field Camera 3, fine guidance sensor and the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 Final Launch Operations Rehearsal . Richard Jones, manager of the Mission Management and Integration Office for NASA's Commercial Crew Program, monitors the countdown during a dress rehearsal in preparation for the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission with NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren "Woody" Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev onboard, Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023, in firing room four of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission is the sixth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Bowen, Hoburg, Alneyadi, and Fedyaev are scheduled to launch at 1:45 a.m. EST on Feb. 27, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

Members of the Artemis 1 launch team, including personnel with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) and Jacobs Test and Operations Contract (TOSC), participate in validation testing inside Firing Room 1 in the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 11, 2019.The team includes personnel with NASAs Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) and Jacobs Test and Operations Contract (TOSC). The simulation was designed to validate the firing room consoles and communications systems, as well as the new Spaceport Command and Control System (SCCS), which will operate, monitor and coordinate ground equipment in preparation for Artemis 1, the uncrewed first flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft.

DEU, Germany : Man with headset in front of a computer screen, on the phone

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach reacts with applause to the liftoff of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-135 mission to the International Space Station. Atlantis with its crew of four; Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, lifted off at 11:29 a.m. EDT on July 8, 2011 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts for the station. Atlantis also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 will be the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, and the 135th and final mis

Sam Denison, a senior software developer at the 49th Test and Evaluation Squadron at Barksdale AFB, La., prepares a new beyond line of sight communications system before its first aerial demonstration aboard an Air Force B-52, June 22, 2022. The system, named IRS, allows near real time data, voice and imagery transfer that can be relayed to the 608th Air Operations Center in near real time.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-2 Flight Readiness Review takes place at NASAs Kennedy Space Center on April 15, 2021. Crew-2 is targeted to launch from the Florida Spaceports Launch Complex 39A on April 22 at 6:11 a.m. EDT. NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and  Megan McArthur, JAXA astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, and ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet will fly to the International Space Station aboard SpaceXs Crew Dragon Endeavour, powered by the companys Falcon 9 rocket.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach monitors the countdown to liftoff of space shuttle Endeavour in Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Behind Leinbach, from left, are STS-134 Launch Commentator George Diller, Endeavour's NASA Flow Director Dana Hutcherson and STS-134 Assistant Launch Director Pete Nickolenko. Endeavour lifted off on its STS-134 mission to the International Space Station on time at 8:56 a.m. EDT on May 16.The shuttle and its six-member crew are embarking on a mission to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS), Express Logistics Carrier-3, a high-pressure gas tank and additional spare parts for the Dextre robotic helper to the space station. Endeavour's first launch attempt on April 29 was scrubbed because of an issue associated with a faulty power distribution box called the aft load control assembly-2 (ALCA-2).

JSC2007-E-41603 (8 August 2007) --- William Gerstenmaier (foreground), NASA Associate Administrator for Space Operations, watches the launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavour, to get STS-118 underway, from the Launch Control Center August 8, 2007 at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The shuttle lifted off from launch pad 39A at 6:36 p.m. (EDT).

Vice President Harris and President Yoon at GSFC. Joe Easley, robotics demonstration and test engineer at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center, left, is seen with MSIT Minister Jong-Ho Lee as he uses a controller to manipulate one of the robotic arms at the Robot Operations Center (ROC), Tuesday, April 25, 2023, during a tour of NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, launch team members monitor the countdown to the launch of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-135 mission to the International Space Station. Seen here are Atlantis NASA Flow Director Angie Brewer, Assistant Launch Director Pete Nickolenko, Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach and Payloads Launch Manager and Deputy Director of ISS and Spacecraft Processing at Kennedy, Bill Dowdell.Atlantis with its crew of four; Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim, lifted off at 11:29 a.m. EDT on July 8, 2011 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts for the station. Atlantis also will fly the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pum

Norm Knight, deputy director of Flight Operations at NASA's Johnson Space Center, speaks with Lee Rosen, vice president, Mission and Launch Operations at SpaceX during a dress rehearsal in preparation for the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-1 mission with NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi onboard, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020, in firing room four of the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-1 mission is the first crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Hopkins, Glover, Walker, and Noguchi are scheduled to launch at 7:49 p.m. EST on Saturday, Nov. 14, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

From Hangar AE at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the Orion team conducted the successful flight test of the Launch Abort System on Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) on July 2, 2019.

Recently, U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) completed a multi-year $605,000 project to fully digitize the newest of the three dynamometers. The modern digital controls improve the precise control of the vehicles speed and loads applied to vehicles during evaluations, which means more accurate test data for customers. The previous analog method was really labor intensive, said Scott Mackenzie, engineer in YPGs Engineering Support Branch. Now it is really simple for one operator to input on a computer screen, when previously it was dials and knobs monitoring all of the different functions and having to keep it within a certain threshold of parameters.

Richard Jones, manager of the Mission Management and Integration Office for NASA's Commercial Crew Program, monitors the countdown during a dress rehearsal in preparation for the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Crew Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-2 mission with NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide onboard, Sunday, April 18, 2021, in firing room four of the Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-2 mission is the second operational mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Kimbrough, McArthur, Pesquet, and Hoshide are scheduled to launch at 6:11 a.m. ET on Thursday, April 22, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

JSC2001-E-12118 (19 April 2001) --- Left to right, astronaut Christopher J. (Gus) Loria, astronaut Scott D. Altman, flight director LeRoy Cain and flight director John Shannon keep up with STS-100 pre-launch activities from their consoles in the shuttle flight control room in Houston's Mission Control Center (MCC). Altman is ascent spacecraft communicator (CAPCOM) and is assisted by Loria, CAPCOM specializing in weather issues. Cain is ascent flight director.

Inside the Launch Control Centers Firing Room 1 at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida, members of the Artemis I launch team rehearse the procedures for fueling the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket with super cold propellants, or cryogenics, on Aug. 18, 2020. During the cryogenic simulation, potential problem scenarios were introduced to test the tools, processes, and procedures necessary for fueling the rocket. Artemis I will be the first integrated test flight of SLS and the Orion spacecraft - the system that will ultimately land the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2024.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 Launch. Zeb Scoville, NASA's deputy chief flight director, monitors the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on the Crew-6 mission with NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren "Woody" Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev onboard, Thursday, March 2, 2023, in firing room four of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission is the sixth crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Bowen, Hoburg, Alneyadi, and Fedyaev launched at 12:34 a.m. EST, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

NASA astronaut Bob Behnken, seated at a console inside SpaceX Mission Control in Hawthorne, California, monitors the Crew Dragon spacecraft static fire engine tests taking place at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Nov. 13, 2019. The tests will help validate the Crew Dragons launch escape system ahead of the upcoming in-flight abort demonstration as part of NASAs Commercial Crew Program. Behnken and NASA astronaut Doug Hurley will be the first people to fly aboard Crew Dragon in SpaceXs Demo-2 mission to the International Space Station.

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Members of the launch team in Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center watch the historic ride of Space Shuttle Discovery as it rockets through the sky on mission STS-121 -- the first ever Independence Day launch of a space shuttle. Liftoff was on-time at 2:38 p.m. EDT. During the 12-day mission, the STS-121 crew of seven will test new equipment and procedures to improve shuttle safety, as well as deliver supplies and make repairs to the International Space Station. Landing is scheduled for July 16 or 17 at Kennedy's Shuttle Landing Facility.

Members of the Ascent Abort-2 (AA-2) Flight Test team perform a drop test of data recording devices about 10 miles off the coast of NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2018. These devices, called Ejectable Data Recorders (EDRs), were tossed out of a helicopter hovering 5,000 feet over the Atlantic Ocean and retrieved by recovery boats. The AA-2 Flight Test team is evaluating how the systems in the devices react to elements encountered from the sky to the ocean. In April 2019, the EDRs will eject from the Orion test article during a scheduled test of the spacecrafts Launch Abort System (LAS).

NASA Officials gather at Ames Research Center to discuss Spaceship development progress. Constellation is developing the Orion spacecraft and Ares rockets to support an American return to the moon by 2020. Bill Moede and Jim Taylor, Ames (Planners) Video crew and Ed Schilling, NASA video producer in distance

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Captain Bren Wade is steering Liberty Star, one of NASA's solid rocket booster retrieval ships in the direction of the right spent booster that splashed down into the Atlantic Ocean after space shuttle Discovery's STS-133 launch.The shuttles two solid rocket booster casings and associated flight hardware are recovered in the Atlantic Ocean after every launch by Freedom Star and Liberty Star. The boosters impact the Atlantic about seven minutes after liftoff and the retrieval ships are stationed about 10 miles from the impact area at the time of splashdown. After the spent segments are processed, they will be transported to Utah, where they will be refurbished and stored, if needed.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, launch controllers keep track of the imminent launch of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-132 mission to the International Space Station. The launch team worked very few issues during the countdown and picture-perfect weather led to an on-time launch at 2 20 p.m. EDT on May 14. STS-132 is the 132nd shuttle flight, the 32nd for Atlantis and the 34th shuttle mission dedicated to station assembly and maintenance.

STS-132 LAUNCH L-0 FIRING ROOM 2 & 4 TANKING PRELAUNCH ACTIVITIES

An engineer in a control trailer at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida monitors data before flights of agency F-18 jets to measure the effects of sonic booms. Several flights a day have been taking place the week of Aug. 21, 2017 as part of NASA's Sonic Booms in Atmospheric Turbulence, or SonicBAT II Program. NASA at Kennedy is partnering with the agency's Armstrong Flight Research Center in California, Langley Research Center in Virginia, and Space Florida for a program in which F-18 jets will take off from the Shuttle Landing Facility and fly at supersonic speeds while agency researchers measure the effects of low-altitude turbulence caused by sonic booms.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 Launch. Norm Knight, director of Flight Operations at NASA's Johnson Space Center, left, and Joe Acaba, Chief of the Astronaut Office, right are seen as they monitor the countdown of the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission with NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren "Woody" Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev onboard, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in firing room four of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission is the first crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Bowen, Hoburg, Alneyadi, and Fedyaev launched at 12:34 a.m. EST on March 2, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

NASA mission controllers, engineers, pilots and communications specialists in the mission control room monitor the supersonic research flight off the coast of Galveston, as part of the QSF18 flight series. The flight operations crew tracks the status of the flights, maintains communications with the aircraft, communicates with U.S. Coast Guard, and coordinates community feedback data.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour NASA Flow Director Dana Hutcherson, left, STS-134 Assistant Launch Director Pete Nickolenko and Shuttle Launch Director Mike Leinbach monitor the STS-134 countdown in Firing Room 4 of the Launch Control Center at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Endeavour lifted off on its STS-134 mission to the International Space Station on time at 8:56 a.m. EDT on May 16.The shuttle and its six-member crew are embarking on a mission to deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer-2 (AMS), Express Logistics Carrier-3, a high-pressure gas tank and additional spare parts for the Dextre robotic helper to the space station. Endeavour's first launch attempt on April 29 was scrubbed because of an issue associated with a faulty power distribution box called the aft load control assembly-2 (ALCA-2).

Wave trackers with Applied Physical Sciences monitor ocean wave conditions during Underway Recovery Test-7 (URT-7) aboard the USS John P. Murtha on Nov. 4, 2018. NASA's Recovery Team, along with the U.S. Navy, practice recovering a test version of the Orion capsule as part of URT-7 in the Pacific Ocean. URT-7 is one in a series of tests to verify and validate procedures and hardware that will be used to recover the Orion spacecraft after it splashes down in the Pacific Ocean following deep space exploration missions. Orion will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.

Joint Information Center (JIC), Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and Radiation Control Center (RADCC) members prepare for the launch of NASAs Mars 2020 Perseverance rover and Ingenuity helicopter on July 30, 2020, at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida. JIC members include representatives on the local, regional and national level. Mars 2020 launched on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 541 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at nearby Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Liftoff was at 7:50 a.m. EDT. The rover is part of NASAs Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the Red Planet. The rover will search for habitable conditions in the ancient past and signs of past microbial life on Mars. The Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management.

Benjamin Connell, a principal scientist with Applied Physical Sciences, monitors wave movement inside the well deck of a U.S. Navy ship during Underway Recovery Test-7 (URT-7) on Oct. 30, 2018. The Exploration Ground Systems (EGS) recovery team and the U.S. Navy will use a test version of the Orion crew module, several rigid hull inflatable boats and support equipment to verify and validate processes, procedures, hardware and personnel during recovery of Orion in open waters. The testing is one in a series of tests to verify and validate procedures and hardware that will be used to recover the Orion spacecraft after it splashes down in the Pacific Ocean following deep space exploration missions. Orion will have emergency abort capability, sustain the crew during space travel and provide safe re-entry from deep space return velocities.

Communications, Navigation, and Network Reconfigurable Test-bed, CoNNeCT

NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 Launch. Benji Reed, senior director of Human Spaceflight Programs at SpaceX, center, talks with NASA Administrator Bill Nelson as they monitor the countdown of the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission with NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov onboard, Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023, in SpaceXs Launch and Landing Control Center in HangerX at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission is the first crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Moghbeli, Mogensen, Furukawa, and Borisov launched at 3:27 a.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

At the Launch Equipment Test Facility, Mike Ynclan, with Dynacs, and Greg Melton, a NASA engineer, look at measurements during testing of the X-33 umbilical system. A team of Kennedy Space Center experts developed the umbilical system, comprising panels, valves and hoses that provide the means to load the X-33 with super-cold propellant. The X-33, under construction at Lockheed Martin Skunk Works in Palmdale, Calif., is a half-scale prototype of the planned operational reusable launch vehicle dubbed VentureStar

NASA astronauts Doug Hurley, left, and Bob Behnken, seated at consoles inside SpaceX Mission Control in Hawthorne, California, monitor the Crew Dragon spacecraft static fire engine tests taking place at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on Nov. 13, 2019. The tests will help validate the Crew Dragons launch escape system ahead of the upcoming in-flight abort demonstration as part of NASAs Commercial Crew Program. Behnken and Hurley will be the first astronauts to fly aboard Crew Dragon in SpaceXs Demo-2 mission to the International Space Station.

NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 Launch. Norm Knight, director of Flight Operations at NASA's Johnson Space Center, left, and Joe Acaba, Chief of the Astronaut Office, center, are seen as they speak with NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, right, as NASA and SpaceX teams monitor the countdown of the launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the company's Dragon spacecraft on NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission with NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren "Woody" Hoburg, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev onboard, Wednesday, March 1, 2023, in firing room four of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASAs SpaceX Crew-6 mission is the first crew rotation mission of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket to the International Space Station as part of the agencys Commercial Crew Program. Bowen, Hoburg, Alneyadi, and Fedyaev launched at 12:34 a.m. EST on March 2, from Launch Complex 39A at the Kenned

Janet Anderson, Paul Crawford, and teams at NASAs Marshall Space Flight Center help monitor launch conditions for the Demo-2 mission from the Huntsville Operations Support Center, HOSC.

STS-119 flight controllers during undocking. Photo Date: 3/25/09. Bldg. 30s - WFCR.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Media and Tweetup participants from around the globe gather at the NASA News Center at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Press Site in Florida to cover the prelaunch activities and lift off of space shuttle Atlantis on its STS-135 mission to the International Space Station. Atlantis began its final flight, with Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim on board, at 11:29 a.m. EDT July 8 to deliver the Raffaello multi-purpose logistics module packed with supplies and spare parts to the station. Also in Atlantis' payload bay is the Robotic Refueling Mission experiment that will investigate the potential for robotically refueling existing satellites in orbit. In addition, Atlantis will return with a failed ammonia pump module to help NASA better understand the failure mechanism and improve pump designs for future systems. STS-135 is the 33rd flight of Atlantis, the 37th shuttle mission to the space station, an

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