NASA is broadcasting live radio chatter from the astronauts on Saturday's historic SpaceX launch. Here's how to listen.
- SpaceX is set to send two NASA astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, into orbit.
- It will be Elon Musk's company's first crewed launch and the first time American astronauts have launched on a US spacecraft since 2011.
- You can listen to live audio from the astronauts on the Crew Dragon spaceship via NASA TV on YouTube — the stream is embedded below.
- You can also call into NASA's landlines for voice-only audio at 321-867-7135.
SpaceX is preparing for its first crewed launch: Its Crew Dragon spaceship is scheduled to carry two NASA astronauts into orbit on Saturday, starting at 3:22 p.m. ET.
NASA and SpaceX are broadcasting live audio from the mission, called Demo-2, on NASA TV's YouTube channel, which is embedded below. You'll be able to hear what the veteran astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley say aboard the SpaceX spacecraft as the rocket launches from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
NASA and SpaceX also have a YouTube livestream of the launch, with commentary from NASA mission directors and other employees.
If you want to go old-school, you can also call in to one of NASAs three phone numbers — 321-867-1220, 321-867-1240, and 321-867-1260 — which are all playing the countdown and live commentary.
The space agency also has a number that features no-commentary, voice-only audio from the astronauts: 321-867-7135. (Each line has limited capacity for callers, so if you can't connect, try NASA's YouTube feeds instead.)
What the mission is all about
SpaceX is launching Behnken and Hurley to the International Space Station, where they are expected to stay for 110 days.
This would be the US's first crewed spacecraft launch since the end of NASA's space shuttle program in 2011. Since then, NASA has been buying seats for its astronauts on Russian Soyuz spacecraft. A successful launch would also mark the first time humans have flown on a commercially made spaceship.
The Crew Dragon spacecraft and this launch are the product of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, a partnership between the space agency and two private companies — SpaceX and Boeing — to build human-ready spaceships that can ferry astronauts to and from the space station.
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