SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 - DM-2 or SpX-DM-2 - Launching May 30, 2020
Screenshot from SpaceX/NASA Webcast of the launch of Dragon DM-2 - SpX-DM-2
Mission Rundown: SpaceX Falcon 9 B5 - Dragon DM-2
Written: August 1, 2021 - New in depth version: August 16, 2022
So We got the Crew Dragon ready to go
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 launches NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley on the Crew Dragon’s Demo-2 mission at 15:22:45 EDT from Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). History was made as the gap in US domestic crew launch capability was ended, as the Demo-2 spacecraft’s commander, Doug Hurley, flew on the last mission of the Space Shuttle program, Atlantis in 2011 on STS-135, bridging the gap in domestic crew launch capability from the United States.
Demo-2 lifted off from LC-39A at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center — the same pad where 12 Saturn V rockets and 82 Space Shuttles launched from. Plus 18 Falcon 9 rockets and 3 Falcon Heavy since the Amos-6 static fire test anomaly.
It is the third mission overall for SpaceX and its Crew Dragon vehicle following its Demo-1 flight last year and the inflight Dragon abort mission in January 2000.
Like the Space Shuttle before it, Crew Dragon is reusable – the first reusable human capsule launch and reentry system in the world. The DM-2 mission marks the first flight to orbit for Endeavour C206 in May 2020 with NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Robert “Bob” Behnken since 2011.
Following the stage separation from 2nd stage and Endeavour , the booster B1058-1 will conduct an atmosphere re-entry burn and a landing burn and will softly touch down on “Of Course I Still Love You'' positioned 510 km downrange on the Atlantic Ocean.
B1058-1 was static fire tested at SpaceX’s McGregor, Texas facility on August 19, 2019 and then shipped to the Kennedy Space Center (KSC). Over the next few months, they will integrate the Falcon 9 and Dragon 2 at KSC Launch Complex-39A - LC-39A.
Falcon 9 booster B1058-1 conducted a hot fire test at 16:33:33 EDT; It appeared normal; as usual, we are now awaiting an update from SpaceX on the quick-look data review and plans for the DM-2 launch.
The DM-2 Dragon Payload
During the historic Demo-2 mission in May 2020 with NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Robert “Bob” Behnken, when in orbit it was revealed that the DM-2 crew have named the Dragon (C206) “Endeavour” in honor of their first flights on Space Shuttle Endeavour.
After liftoff, Falcon 9’s first stage will propel the astronauts for 2 minutes and 30 seconds to an altitude of around 75 km (~47 miles). After stage separation, Falcon 9’s second stage takes over for the second part of the flight.
Approximately 6 minutes and 7 seconds after second stage vacuum engine ignition the second stage engine will shut down (SECO) and the astronauts will be in orbit.
Endeavour was inserted into an initial 190 x 210 km orbit, after which a series of phasing and rendezvous burns that will take place to bring the spacecraft Endeavour to the Station for a docking on 14:16 UTC - 05:08 EDT on Sunday May 31, 2020.
3 minutes and 19 seconds after SECO, Crew Dragon will separate from the second stage and open up its nose cone in order to expose the 4 forward facing Draco thrusters.
Once the Draco thrusters are exposed, the DM-2 Crew Dragon will perform a number of phasing burns to align its orbit with the ISS’ one. After the phasing burns, DM-2 Dragon will slowly approach the ISS and with the start of proximity operations it will enter the ISS Keep Out Sphere.
Last but not least, after around 8 hours and 30 minutes, C206 Endeavour with DM-2 will autonomously dock to the nadir docking port. They should be called IDA-2 and IDA-3, since that is their built number. IDA-1 was lost during the CRS-7 inflight anomaly.
The only thing I didn’t find among the sources was a cargo manifest of, what I presume would be crew supplies and science experiments in the fragile end. I found it.
The Dragon DM-2 Crew
DM-2 dress rehearsal on the walkway towards Crew Dragon “Endeavour“. (Credit: SpaceX)
The crew on this DM-2 mission is composed of two NASA astronauts:
NASA astronaut Robert L. Behnken was born 28 July 1970 in St Ann, Missouri. He holds a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, a Ph.D in Mechanical Engineering from the California Institute of Technology, and the rank of Colonel in the U.S. Air Force.
Colonel Behnken is a veteran of two Space Shuttle missions and has spent over 29 days in orbit and conducted six spacewalks. His first flight, STS-123 in March 2008, was a 15 day mission that delivered the first component of the Japan Kibo laboratory and the Canadian robotics, Dextre unit to the Station.
Behnken would fly again with Space Shuttle Endeavour on STS-130 in February 2010. During this 13 day mission, the crew installed the Tranquility module and Cupola to the International Space Station.
He was chosen for Demo-2 in August 2018 serving as Joint Operations Commander once Dragon docks with the Station, Thursday.
NASA astronaut Douglas G. Hurley was born on 21 October 1966 in Endicott, New York, and holds a B.S.E. in Civil Engineering from Tulane University. He is a graduate of the U.S. Navy Pilot Training Program and was a flight and test pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps, logging over 5,500 hours in more than 25 aircrafts.
His first mission was STS-127 aboard the Shuttle Endeavour in July 2009. This mission included delivery of the Japanese Experiment Module and made history when it docked to the International Space Station, forming a hub of three spacecraft with the most crew members ever, 13.
Hurley would fly again as a pilot two years later in July 2011 on the final flight of the Space Shuttle. STS-135 was a 12 day mission that delivered supplies to the Station inside the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module Raffaello.
Hurley was selected along with Bob Behnken, Sunita Williams, and Eric Boe as crew astronauts for the Commercial Crew Program. He was later assigned to SpaceX’s Demo-2 mission in August 2018.
He will serve as Dragon’s Commander on Demo-2.
Doug and Bob are both married to fellow NASA astronauts and both have a son, so they are known as ‘Spacedads’ or ‘The Dads’.
NASA astronauts Doug Hurley, and Bob Behnken, participated in a full dress rehearsal ahead of the SpaceX uncrewed In-Flight Abort Test launched from Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida on January 17, 2020.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft will lift off from Launch Complex 39A on the flight test, which will demonstrate the spacecraft’s escape capabilities in preparation for crewed flights to the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Behnken and Hurley are slated to fly on the company’s first crewed mission, Demo-2.
Where to land the Dragon?
The Dragon 2 spacecraft was originally planned to remain at the station for 8 days, but the duration has now been extended to around three months (with an upper limit of 110 days), before undocking from the station.
Dragon will then distance itself from the station, ditch its trunk, then perform its deorbit burn approximately five hours later. After reentry, Dragon will splashdown in the Atlantic ocean. NASA TV will provide coverage of these events. Go Searcher, Go Navigator, and other vessels of SpaceX’s east coast fleet will recover Dragon after splashdown.
The 11 minute 22 second deorbit burn from the forward bulkhead thrusters began at 1:56:45 pm EDT (17:56:45 UTC) and reduced Dragon’s velocity by 75.042 m/s and place the craft on course for reentry into Earth’s atmosphere over the Gulf of Mexico.
The trunk will remain in orbit for well over a year as it will have to decay naturally having been jettisoned prior to the deorbit burn.
I wonder why they don't ditch the trunk after the deorbit burn? Is that too dangerous? Or is the trunk too heavy, so it would require a longer deorbit burn? Asked and answered.
Seven hazard areas for landing Dragon C206 - Recovery Location 1 by Pensacola was chosen
Crew Dragon Endeavour undocked from the Station right on time at 7:34 pm EDT (23:34 UTC) on Saturday, 1 August, which was preceded by a go/no go poll after ground teams assessed the readiness of the spacecraft, crew, and Station for DM-2’s departure.
The Crew Dragon will autonomously undock, depart the space station, and splash down at one of seven targeted landing zones in the Atlantic Ocean or Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida. Endeavour also will return to Earth with important and time-sensitive research.
Splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico came as expected at 14:48 EDT (18:48 UTC) off the southern coast of Alabama and southwest of Pensacola, Florida.
For normal crew rescue and recovery operations, the NASA and SpaceX teams select two primary splashdown locations from the seven possible locations about two weeks prior to return, with additional decision milestones taking place prior to crew boarding the spacecraft, during free flight, and before Crew Dragon performs a deorbit burn.
NASA and SpaceX closely coordinate with the U.S. Coast Guard to establish a 10-nautical-mile safety zone around the expected splashdown location to ensure safety for the public and for those involved in the recovery operations, as well as the crew aboard the returning spacecraft.
Twelve local boats converge on splash down site, while Go Navigator was caught off guard
The return will mark the end of the second crew rotation mission to the International Space Station of the Crew Dragon spacecraft developed in partnership between NASA and SpaceX as a part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program.
Teams on the Go Navigator or another available recovery ship, including two fast boats, now are in the process of securing the DM-2 Dragon and ensuring the spacecraft is safe for the recovery effort. As the fast boat teams complete their work, the recovery ship will move into position to hoist Crew Dragon onto the main deck of Go Navigator with the astronauts inside.
Once on the main deck, the crew will be taken out of the spacecraft and receive medical checks before a helicopter ride to Pensacola to board a plane for Houston.
After its splashdown on August 2, 2020, SpaceX’s teams found some unexpected erosion on the heat shield and some minor irregularities during parachute deployment. While these irregularities were still inside their safety margins, SpaceX improved their systems.
What’s wrong with this Preview?
When I was browsing the original Prelaunch Preview, I found two flaws in the script:
First the “Table of Contents” (Click to Expand) bar was blocking the view of the first data list with the most common questions about the mission beginning with “Lift off Time”.
Second at the end of the script, the “Launch, Landing and Dragon 2 Deployment” Timeline list was covered by a “Mission Timeline Video”, so you couldn't see it. That made me make this Google document containing those two lists, which I recovered by going through the Source Code of the Prelaunch Preview.
Ehh… Is all that code really needed to make a homepage these days? No wonder it goes on the fritz. How do you fix it? Right now the thought of comparing two similar Prelaunch Previews and going through their Source Code gives me the chills. That feels like it is a massive headache, which I don’t need. So Trevor Sesnic, do your thing. Fix It.
Oh. I have made a few minor changes to all Postlaunch Review - Prelaunch Preview:
“Payload - Crew Dragon serial number C206” - Is placed just under Launch Location
Payload - Production type number and Satellite type - For all satellites except secret.
These three headlines should be above the Mission Timeline but I also use UTC.
“Maybe I’m too hung up on UTC, I have stopped using it too much. Doesn't look neat.”
I’m partial to using UTC, because the american am/pm EST - EDT - PST - PDT is not something we Europeans appreciate, so keep it to yourself. That UTC is 4-5 and 7-8 hours ahead of American time is easy, but your am/pm feels like it belongs on a radio set.
Otherwise I have made a Launch List of all Falcon 9 missions from 2010. Link Below. Hope it’s alright with you Guys. Had a lot of time on my hands.
I have later discovered NasaSpaceFlight as an incredibly great source of information with articles, launch forums, mission discussions and more.
Therefore I will add “Where to read more in depth” links in my “Where to watch” link box.
A new reader will get a lot of information on the mission background, but most of it is repeat info from previous articles. Fx. SLC-40 Fiftyfive Titan launches yada yada …
With Crew Dragon 2 and Cargo Dragon 2 no longer having jettisonable fairing parts, the table line “Are these fairings new?” are no longer necessary and have been deleted.
Ranting in progress - I just need explanations - Please
And some detailed information slips through your cracks. Fx. What do you mean by this line – 2nd mission with new fairing without metallic TPS on the fairing from Starlink L23
What is metallic TPS? Please explain or refer to a source.
Starlink V1.0 L23 (Starlink RF Mission 6-1): the 24th Starlink mission
Don’t 6-1 mean 6th Shell and 1st flight? RF as Radio Frequencies? In Aurora Borealis? Maybe that’s the purpose of interlinking lasers? To beat the radio noise from the Sun.
I have later deduced that “Starlink RF Mission 6-1” is the designation of this particular Starlink mission on the transmission permit issued by FAA.
Quite bothersome. I'll say.
