Tropical Storm Elsa Hits Florida: SpaceX Dragon Undocking From International Space Station Delayed

Tropical Storm Warning With severe winds and heavy rains forecast to impact the carrier's landing zone off the coast of Florida, Elsa has thrown a wrench in the time of SpaceX's Dragon cargo spacecraft undocking from the International Space Station.

The Dragon was supposed to disembark on Tuesday and parachute into Florida waters two days later. Due to the threat of Hurricane Irma, which has killed at least three people in the Caribbean and is making its way toward Florida, NASA said the undocking would not take place until Wednesday at the earliest.

"NASA and SpaceX flight control teams continue to monitor the weather and splashdown locations," NASA said in a statement announcing the delay. "Certain parameters like wind speeds and wave heights must be within certain limits to ensure the safety of the recovery teams, the science, and the spacecraft."

On June 3, the SpaceX Dragon was launched from Kennedy Space Center on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, arriving at the International Space Station 16 hours later with more than 7,300 pounds of supplies for the crew. When it returns, it will deliver data from a number of space-based scientific projects.

NASA Said the Ground Teams Continue Monitoring the Situation

NASA's ground crews will continue to monitor the situation to ensure that wave heights and wind speeds remain within safe limits during the recovery effort, the space agency said per Space.com. Astronaut Shane Kimbrough will also be watching the spacecraft as it departs from the Harmony module's space-facing port when it happens.

The Cargo Dragon spacecraft arrived at the International Space Station on June 4, Science Times reported. It bought 7,300 pounds of hardware, experiments, and supplies. This week, the spaceship will return to Earth after completing its mission and conducting several tests onboard the orbiting laboratory.

Dragon will use its engines to travel away from the space station after a safe departure before re-entering the atmosphere.

The SpaceX ship will splash down in the Atlantic Ocean, but if Tropical Storm Elsa continues on her present path, which includes areas of Florida, NASA officials said the undocking and splashdown could be rescheduled if necessary.

Over the weekend, NASA Astronaut Megan McArthur posted photographs of Elsa from the International Space Station as the storm approached Cuba.

Dragon is transporting research from the International Space Station, some of which necessitates a temperature-controlled environment. An experiment exploring how gravity affects freeze-dried materials, which could have implications for the pharmaceutical industry, is among the studies returning to Earth. Another experiment will investigate oral bacteria in space, as well as a test involving muscle cells.

The capsule will be returned to the Kennedy Space Center's Space Station Processing Facility after splashdown, where the experiments will be handed over to researchers.

Should Elsa's path move east, putting recovery crews in jeopardy, according to NASA, there are more options for undocking. If the departure is delayed, the cooling materials for the tests can be swapped out.

Elsa Becomes a Tropical Storm Again Ahead of Florida Landfall

As Elsa closed in on Florida and the Southeast on Tuesday, last preparations were rushed to completion across the Sunshine State, unleashing torrential rain and powerful winds across the Florida Keys. AccuWeather said the system grew into a Category 1 hurricane when it approached Florida on Tuesday evening about 8 p.m. EDT, after dropping to a tropical storm near Cuba. It had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph.

Elsa had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph as of 2 a.m. EDT early Wednesday morning. Elsa became a powerful tropical storm once more as a result of this. However, residents are reminded that the difference between a 70-mph tropical storm and a 75-mph hurricane is little.

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