'Crew-6' mission arrives at the space station
Docking delayed due to software problem
At 06:40 UTC on March 3, 2023, the Crew Dragon C206 Endeavor spacecraft docked with the Harmony module of the American segment of the International Space Station. On board the spacecraft were the crew of the Crew-6 mission - astronauts Stephen Bowen, Woody Hoburg and Sultan al-Neyadi and cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev. After opening the transfer hatches, they will join the Expedition 68 crew – cosmonauts Sergei Prokopiev, Dmitry Petelin and Anna Kikina, NASA astronauts Franco Rubio, Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, and JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata. Due to technical issues with the docking system, the docking was slightly delayed, according to NASA.
Crew Dragon halted the rendezvous 20 meters from the ISS, waiting for ground crews to update software to resolve a problem with one of the 12 latches on the nose of the capsule, signaling its abnormal position. All tie-down hooks were open and crews tested a software replacement that showed a faulty sensor on one hook. The spacecraft could hold for about 2 hours in that position and maintain the ability to rendezvous. The teams sent the software replacement, which fixed the problem.
Astronauts aboard the ISS first opened the hatch between the space station and the pressurized docking adapter at 03:45 EST (08:45 UTC); then they opened the door to the newly arrived ship.
The spacecraft had taken off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on a Falcon-9 rocket the previous morning. The launch of the spacecraft into orbit and its separation from the second stage of the rocket went smoothly. Andrey Fedyaev became the 22nd Russian cosmonaut to fly on an American spacecraft, and the second on a SpaceX spacecraft.
