It’s been almost a decade since NASA sent astronauts to the International Space Station back in 2011.  Now, a new era begins as two American astronauts will soar into the sky aboard SpaceX‘s new Crew Dragon spacecraft on Saturday afternoon.

Together with @SpaceX, we will return human spaceflight to American soil after nearly a decade. Tomorrow is not only a big day for our teams – it’s a big day for our country. https://t.co/DQ1Taz1vXU#LaunchAmerica pic.twitter.com/JT1zhQDKs2

— NASA (@NASA) May 27, 2020

“We are returning human spaceflight to the United States of America,” said NASA’s Chief of Staff Gabe Sherman.  “We are launching American astronauts, on American rockets from American soil, and that is something I think everybody can take a lot of pride in.”

NASA’s Commercial Crew Program plans to send astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley into space on a Falcon 9 rocket at approximately 3:22 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 30.  This will take place at Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, FL, the same launch pad Apollo 11 soared from to go to the Moon 50 years ago!

According to NASA, the astronauts will be taking part in an extended stay at the space station for the Demo-2 mission (current mission length has yet to be determined).

“We are testing out all of the systems and processes with the vehicle and the capsule on this mission,” Sherman said.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE DEMO-2 MISSION

“This is a unique moment where all of America can take a moment and look at our country do something stunning again,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine at a press briefing on Tuesday.

This is also an exciting milestone as it will help certify Crew Dragon for future trips to the space station for longer periods of time.  According to NASA, the research and technology investigations taking place onboard the station will play a major role in paving the way for future exploration of the Moon and Mars starting with the agency’s Artemis program.  The goals for the future mission are to put the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2024.

“There’s no doubt that what we learn anytime we’re launching humans we’re able to take an apply to future missions,” Sherman said.  “So I think there will be some great technical knowledge that we can probably take from this and feed forward to the moon and onto Mars.  And so we’re looking forward to learning as much as we can from this mission and moving to operational state with a commercial group program.”

The one thing that could set the launch back would be inclement weather, and there are a series of guidelines that have to be met for the 45th Space Wing Weather Squadron at Patrick Air Force Base to give NASA the green light.

“We provide the launch support for everything that launches, flies, or lands from Cape Canaveral to Kennedy Space Center and Patrick Air Force Base so we are the ones issuing the launch forecasts for the upcoming launch,” said Brian Cizek, a Launch Weather Officer with the 45th Weather Squadron.  “It’s not just the thunderstorm itself being close, it’s also different types of clouds whether they’re growing or associated with those storms.”

The original launch was scheduled for 4:33pm EDT on Wednesday, May 27.  Unfortunately, thunderstorms in the area led to NASA “scrubbing”—or postponing—the launch.  Again, the launch is now scheduled for Saturday, May 30 at 3:22pm EDT.  We will be following the forecast closely right here on WeatherNation this weekend.

There are many ways you can get involved with this historic launch! We will have some coverage of it right here on WeatherNation but you can also watch the full live stream here and participate in activities with your family and friends from NASA!