NASA will provide coverage of the upcoming prelaunch, launch, and docking activities for the agency’s Boeing Orbital Flight Test-2 (OFT-2) to the International Space Station. Scheduled to launch at 6:54 p.m. EDT on Thursday, May 19, OFT-2 is the second uncrewed flight for Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner spacecraft as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.
The Starliner spacecraft will launch on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. About 31 minutes after launch, the Starliner will reach its preliminary orbit. It is scheduled to dock to the space station at 7:10 p.m. on Friday, May 20. Prelaunch activities, launch, and docking will air live on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website.
The spacecraft will carry more than 500 pounds of NASA cargo and crew supplies to the space station and return to Earth with nearly 600 pounds of cargo, including reusable Nitrogen Oxygen Recharge System (NORS) tanks that provide breathable air to station crew members.
OFT-2 will demonstrate the end-to-end capabilities of the Starliner spacecraft and Atlas V rocket, from launch to docking to a return to Earth in the desert of the western United States. The uncrewed flight test will provide valuable data toward NASA certifying Boeing’s crew transportation system for regular flights with astronauts to and from the space station.
The deadline has passed for media accreditation for in person coverage of this launch. More information about media accreditation is available by emailing: [email protected]. A copy of NASA’s media accreditation policy is online.
NASA’s Boeing OFT-2 coverage is as follows and all times are subject to change based on mission operations (all times Eastern):
Tuesday, May 17
Noon – Prelaunch news conference on the NASA TV public channel (or no earlier than one hour after completion of the Launch Readiness Review):
- Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
- Joel Montalbano, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
- Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Boeing Commercial Crew Program
- Gary Wentz, vice president, Government and Commercial Programs, ULA
- Will Ulrich, launch weather officer, U.S. Space Force, 45th Weather Squadron, Space Launch Delta 45
Media may ask questions in-person and via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, please contact the newsroom at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida no later than noon on Tuesday, May 17, at: [email protected].
Wednesday, May 18
1 p.m. – NASA leadership media briefing on NASA TV, with the following participants:
- Bob Cabana, NASA associate administrator
- Janet Petro, director, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
- Kathryn Lueders, associate administrator, Space Operations Mission Directorate
- NASA astronaut Suni Williams
- NASA astronaut Butch Wilmore
- NASA astronaut Mike Fincke
Media may ask questions in-person and via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, please contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than noon Wednesday, May 18, at: [email protected].
Thursday, May 19
6 p.m. – NASA TV launch coverage begins. NASA TV will have continuous coverage through Starliner orbital insertion.
9 p.m. (approximately) – Postlaunch news conference on NASA TV, with the following participants:
- Kathryn Lueders, associate administrator, NASA Space Operations Mission Directorate
- Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
- Joel Montalbano, manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
- Mark Nappi, vice president and program manager, Boeing Commercial Crew Program
- John Elbon, chief operating officer, United Launch Alliance
Media may ask questions in-person and via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, please contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than 8 p.m. Thursday, May 19, at: [email protected].
Friday, May 20
3:30 p.m. – NASA TV rendezvous and docking coverage begins
7:10 p.m. (approximately) – Docking
Saturday, May 21
11:30 a.m. – NASA TV hatch opening and welcoming remarks coverage begins
11:45 a.m. (approximately) – Hatch opening and welcoming remarks
NASA TV Launch Coverage
NASA TV live coverage will begin at 6 p.m. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules, and links to streaming video, visit:
Audio only of the news conferences and launch coverage will be carried on the NASA “V” circuits, which may be accessed by dialing 321-867-1220, -1240, -1260 or -7135. On launch day, “mission audio,” countdown activities without NASA TV launch commentary, will be carried on 321-867-7135.
On launch day, a “clean feed” of the launch without NASA TV commentary will be carried on the NASA TV media channel. Launch also will be available on local amateur VHF radio frequency 146.940 MHz (K4GCC, Launch Information Service And Amateur Television System) and UHF radio frequency 444.925 MHz (N1KSC, Kennedy Space Center Amateur Radio Club), heard within Brevard County on the Space Coast.
NASA Website Launch Coverage
Launch day coverage of NASA’s Boeing OFT-2 will be available on the agency’s website. Coverage will include livestreaming and blog updates beginning no earlier than 6 p.m. Thursday, May 19, as the countdown milestones occur. On-demand streaming video and photos of the launch will be available shortly after liftoff. For questions about countdown coverage, contact the Kennedy newsroom at: 321-867-2468. Follow countdown coverage on our launch blog at:
http://blogs.nasa.gov/commercialcrew
Public Participation
Members of the public can register to attend this launch virtually. NASA’s virtual guest program for this mission also includes curated launch resources, notifications about related opportunities or changes, and a stamp for the NASA virtual guest passport following a successful launch.
Engage kids and students in virtual and hands-on activities that are both family-friendly and educational through Next Gen STEM Commercial Crew.
Watch and Engage on Social Media
Stay connected with the mission on social media via Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram using the hashtag #Starliner. Follow and tag these accounts:
Twitter: @NASA, @Commercial_Crew, @Space_Station, @NASAKennedy
Facebook: NASA, NASACommercialCrew, ISS Facebook, Kennedy Space Center
Instagram: NASA, ISS Instagram, NASAKennedy
NASA will provide a live video feed of Space Launch Complex-41 approximately 6 hours prior to the planned liftoff of the OFT-2 mission. Pending unlikely technical issues, the feed will be uninterrupted until the prelaunch broadcast begins on NASA TV, approximately one hour prior to launch.
Once the feed is live, it will be available at:
http://youtube.com/kscnewsroom
Make sure to check out NASA en español on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube for more Spanish-language coverage on OFT-2.
Para obtener información sobre cobertura en español en el Centro Espacial Kennedy o si desea solicitar entrevistas en español, comuníquese con Antonia Jaramillo, 321-501-8425, [email protected].
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is delivering on its goal of safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation to and from the International Space Station from the United States through a partnership with American private industry. This partnership is changing the arc of human spaceflight history by opening access to low-Earth orbit and the International Space Station to more people, more science, and more commercial opportunities. The space station remains the springboard to NASA’s next great leap in space exploration, including future missions to the Moon and, eventually, to Mars.
For NASA’s launch blog and more information about the mission, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew
Rod Washington: Rod is a blogger, writer, filmmaker, photographer, daydreamer who likes to cook. Rod produces and directs the web series, CUPIC: Diary of an Investigator. He also produces news and documentary video projects. Check out his podcast StoriesThisMoment at https://m3e.d71.myftpupload.com/stm-tncn-podcasts/
