SpaceX Crew-4 was the Crew Dragon's fourth NASA Commercial Crew operational flight, and its seventh overall crewed orbital flight. The mission launched on 27 April 2022 at 07:52 UTC[6] before docking with the International Space Station (ISS) at 23:37 UTC. It followed shortly after the private Axiom 1 mission to the ISS earlier in the month utilizing SpaceX hardware. Three American (NASA) astronauts and one European (ESA) astronaut were on board the mission.[7][8][9]
.jpg) Freedom launches to the ISS with the crew members of Crew-4 onboard. | |
| Names | USCV-4 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | ISS crew transport |
| Operator | SpaceX |
| COSPAR ID | 2022-042A |
| SATCAT no. | 52318 |
| Mission duration | 170 days, 13 hours, 2 minutes, 32 seconds[1][2] |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Crew Dragon Freedom |
| Spacecraft type | Crew Dragon |
| Manufacturer | SpaceX |
| Launch mass | 12,519 kg (27,600 lb) |
| Landing mass | 9,616 kg (21,200 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 4 |
| Members | |
| Expedition | Expedition 67 / 68 |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 27 April 2022, 07:52:55 UTC (3:52:55 am EDT)[3] |
| Rocket | Falcon 9 Block 5 (B1067.4) |
| Launch site | Kennedy, LC‑39A |
| End of mission | |
| Recovered by | MV Megan |
| Landing date | 14 October 2022, 20:55:27 UTC (4:55:27 pm EDT) |
| Landing site | Atlantic Ocean, near Jacksonville, Florida[4] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Inclination | 51.64° |
| Docking with ISS | |
| Docking port | Harmony zenith |
| Docking date | 27 April 2022, 23:37 UTC |
| Undocking date | 14 October 2022, 16:05 UTC[5] |
| Time docked | 169 days, 16 hours, 28 minutes |
 Mission patch  From left: Hines, Cristoforetti, Watkins and Lindgren | |
Crew-4 was the maiden flight of the Crew Dragon spacecraft named Freedom, named such by the crew because it "celebrates a fundamental human right, and the industry and innovation that emanate from the unencumbered human spirit".[10] The booster used on this mission was the B1067, which makes it the first Commercial Crew mission to use a booster on its fourth flight (it previously was used to launch SpaceX Crew-3 in 2021).[11]
Crew
editNASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren and Robert Hines were announced on 12 February 2021 to the crew.[7][8] Samantha Cristoforetti was named the commander of Expedition 68 on 28 May 2021.[12] Jessica Watkins was named mission specialist on 16 November 2021.[13] Cristoforetti was later removed as commander of Expedition 68 due to the shortening of the Crew-4 mission.[14]
| Position | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander |  Kjell N. Lindgren, NASAExpedition 67 / 68 Second spaceflight | |
| Pilot | Robert Hines, NASA Expedition 67 / 68 First spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 1 |  Samantha Cristoforetti, ESAExpedition 67 / 68 Second spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 2 | Jessica Watkins, NASA Expedition 67 / 68 First spaceflight | |
| Position[15] | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Steve Bowen, NASA
| |
Mission
editThe mission duration was 170 days.[4] The European part of the mission was called Minerva,[16] named after the Roman goddess of wisdom,[17] and it was European astronaut Cristoforetti's second mission to the ISS.
Gallery
edit-
Crew-4 astronauts before flight -
ISS configuration during Crew-4 -
Crew-4 and Starliner OFT-2 docked to the ISS -
Freedom after reentry and splashdown
.png)
.jpeg)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Sheetz, Michael (27 April 2022). "SpaceX launches Crew-4 mission for NASA, has now sent 26 astronauts to space in under two years". CNBC. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
- ^ NASA (2022). "Crew-4 Mission Overview" (PDF). NASA. p. 1. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
Crew-4 is scheduled for a long duration stay of up to six months aboard station conducting science and maintenance before returning to Earth in the fall of 2022.
- ^ Garcia, Mark (27 April 2022). "SpaceX Crew-4 Launches to Join Station Crew Tonight". NASA. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
- ^ a b Garcia, Mark (14 October 2022). "SpaceX Crew-4 Returns with Splashdown on Florida's Atlantic Coast". NASA. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
- ^ Wall, Mike (14 October 2022). "SpaceX's Crew-4 mission leaves space station and heads for home". space.com. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
Crew-4's Dragon capsule, named Freedom, undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday (Oct. 14) at 12:05 p.m. EDT (1605 GMT)
- ^ Griffin, Amanda (22 April 2022). "NASA and SpaceX Adjust Agency's Crew-4 Launch Date". NASA. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
- ^ a b Finch, Joshua (25 April 2022). "Coverage Updated for NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 Briefing, Events, Broadcast". nasa.gov. NASA. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ a b Howell, Elizabeth (23 February 2021). "These 2 NASA astronauts will fly on SpaceX's Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station in 2022". Space.com. Retrieved 23 February 2021.
- ^ Ellis, Kathleen (18 March 2022). "NASA, SpaceX Adjust Target Launch Date for Crew-4 Mission". nasa.gov. NASA. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
- ^ Klotz, Irene (6 October 2021). "Forum - Crew-4". NASASpaceFlight.com. p. 2. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
- ^ @jeff_foust (19 January 2022). "Steve Stich says the Crew-4 flight will be the first commercial crew mission using a booster on its fourth flight" (Tweet). Retrieved 19 January 2022 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Commanding role for ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti". ESA. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
- ^ "NASA Assigns Astronaut Jessica Watkins to NASA's SpaceX Crew-4 Mission". NASA. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Revised flight plan brings change for Samantha". ESA. 2 March 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
- ^ "Stephen G. Bowen (Captain, USN, Ret.) NASA Astronaut". NASA. 26 April 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2021. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ "Minerva: ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti's second mission to the International Space Station". esa.int. ESA. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
- ^ "Minerva patch explained". European Space Agency. 3 March 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
Inspired by the Roman goddess of wisdom, the handicrafts and the arts, the name Minerva is a homage to the competence and sophisticated craftmanship of the men and women all over the world who make human spaceflight possible.
