There's a lot to follow, both in the leadup to the May 6 launch and shortly afterward.

Boeing's Starliner capsule is scheduled to launch astronauts for the first time ever on May 6.

Space fans will be glued to their screens for the historic liftoff, which will send NASA's Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams toward the International Space Station (ISS) atop a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket.

"I have all the confidence in not only our capabilities, the spacecraft capabilities, but also our mission control team who's ready for the challenge. They're up for it," Williams told reporters after arriving in Florida near the launch site on April 25.

But there will be other events to take in, both in the leadup to launch and in its aftermath. Here's a guide to the upcoming webcasts that will highlight the Starliner mission, which is known as Crew Flight Test (CFT). You'll be able to watch all of them here at Space.com, courtesy of NASA.

The action started on Wednesday (May 1) at 1:30 p.m. EDT (1730 GMT), when NASA held a press conference with Wilmore and Williams at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, which is next door to CFT's launch site, Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

"It almost feels unreal," Williams, who will serve as the mission pilot, said during the livestreamed event, which was conducted remotely while the astronauts were under quarantine ahead of their impending mission. "I don't think either one of us ever dreamed that we'd be associated with the first flight of a brand-new spacecraft."

NASA officials and Starliner program leadership held a preflight press conference at KSC on Friday (May 3) to announce that all team members polled 'go' for launch on May 6.

During opening remarks, NASA administrator Bill Nelson stressed the historical importance of a spacecraft's first crew test flight. "The first time humans have flown on a new spacecraft started with Mercury, then with Gemini, then with Apollo, the space shuttle, then Dragon and now Starliner," Nelson said.

"Oh by the way, one other historical fact is this is the first time since the Apollo 7 launch that a human astronaut launch is actually on what used to be the Air Force's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and now is of course, Cape Canaveral Space Force station," Nelson added.

Launch day! CFT is scheduled to lift off on Monday at 10:34 p.m. EDT (0234 GMT on May 7), but the livestream action starts far earlier — at 6:30 p.m. EDT (2230 GMT). 

The NASA livestream coverage will continue long past launch, all the way through Starliner's docking with the ISS and beyond.

The following events are of particular interest (but note that the given times are tentative and could change):

A post-launch press conference is expected to start on Tuesday (May 7) at midnight EDT (0400 GMT), with the following participants:

NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy

Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate

Steve Stich, manager, NASA's Commercial Crew Program

Dana Weigel, manager, NASA's International Space Station Program

Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing

Gary Wentz, vice president, Government and Commercial Programs, ULA

May 8 is CFT docking day. Starliner is expected to arrive at the ISS at 12:48 a.m. EDT (0648 GMT). The hatches between the two craft will open around 2:35 a.m. EDT (0635 GMT), and astronauts aboard the orbiting lab will deliver welcome remarks at about 3:15 a.m. EDT (0715 GMT).

Then, at 4:15 a.m. EDT (0815 GMT), NASA will host a post-docking news

NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free

Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program

Dana Weigel, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program

Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Commercial Crew Program, Boeing

Starliner will spend about 10 days docked to the ISS before coming back home to Earth. There will doubtless be further coverage of the CFT mission beyond these launch- and arrival-oriented events, so stay tuned!

Source:
courtesy of ENGADGET

by Mike Wall

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