Cosmonaut Anna Kikina of Roscosmos will be the first Russian cosmonaut to travel on a SpaceX Crew Dragon.
NASA's Crew-5 mission, originally slated to launch on September 1, has been postponed by almost a month due to damage to the SapceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. The launch date has been pushed back to September 29, 2022, since the Falcon 9 rocket sustained damage while being transported from SpaceX's factory in California to the McGregor facility in Texas for stage testing.
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NASA intends to send a new crew of four astronauts to the International Space Station in a SpaceX rocket in order to replace the last set of four astronauts who were stationed there (ISS). The Falcon 9 rocket that SpaceX will be employing for the launch will take off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
"A launch at the end of September will allow SpaceX to complete hardware processing and mission teams will continue to review the launch date based on the space station’s visiting spacecraft schedule", NASA said in a statement.
As of right now, the SpaceX crew is working to remove and replace any damaged parts from the rocket. In addition, the Dragon capsule known as ‘Endurance’ which is scheduled to transport four astronauts to the International Space Station, is now undergoing routine repair.
In addition to a new heat shield and other components like as parachutes and pod panels, this is the same spacecraft that sent Crew-3 to the International Space Station. Endurance will be attached to the Falcon 9 rocket and moved to the launch pad for a static fire test once the crews have completed all rocket and spacecraft system checks.
In addition to Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, the new crew comprises Koichi Wakata of JAXA and cosmonaut Anna Kikina of Roscosmos. Soyuz undocking and launch is planned for September 16-September 30. This launch window would open after that.
In view of the Ukraine conflict, Kikina's trip in an American capsule is the most noteworthy aspect of this mission. As the only Russian woman cosmonaut presently on duty, Kikina will be the first Russian to go to space aboard a privately owned American rocket.
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