Things To Do In SW Florida

Only two of the original four members of SpaceX Crew-9’s mission to the International Space Station arrived to Kennedy Space Center on Saturday, making room on their future ride home next year for the pair of NASA astronauts left behind by Boeing’s Starliner.

NASA astronaut and Space Force Col. Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov flew into KSC landing at the former space shuttle landing facility. They’re gearing up for a launch in the Crew Dragon Freedom atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 as early as Thursday — targeting liftoff at 2:05 p.m. with backup dates available Friday and Saturday.

https://www.youtube.com/live/O9mYwRlucZY?si=Ix05jwmhCdHRK46T

The duo will remain in quarantine at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building until launch.

The launch from Canaveral will be the first for SLC-40 as all previous SpaceX human spaceflights have been from Kennedy Space Center. SpaceX built out a second crew access tower so it could use either pad, and KSC’s Launch Pad 39-A is being prepped for NASA’s Europa Clipper mission that will fly on a Falcon Heavy in October. read more

Gov. Ron DeSantis has pledged to provide relief before the end of the year to condo unit owners facing increased costs for required structural safety inspections and plans to fund reserves for upcoming repairs.

But leading members of the House and Senate aren’t endorsing a special session to enact changes, so the Dec. 31 deadline for compliance remains in effect statewide for condo buildings over two stories that turned 30 years old before July 1, 2022.

Condo associations are required to submit what’s called a Milestone Inspection report that determines whether buildings show signs of substantial structural deterioration. They must also obtain a separate report, called a Strategic Integrity Reserve Study. It estimates the remaining lifespans of such components as roofs, structural elements, fire protection systems, plumbing, electrical systems, exterior painting and waterproofing and windows, and determines how much money associations must fund for future repairs or replacements.

Spokespersons for South Florida counties and cities say required inspection reports have been trickling in, and so far none have revealed safety issues that could force owners to evacuate their units. read more

Veteran space journalist Eric Berger’s first foray into the story of how Elon Musk and SpaceX became a success has become required reading for employees of at least one competing rocket company.

He now follows up 2021’s “Liftoff” with this year’s “Reentry” from Penguin Random House available Sept. 24 (Hardcover, $31.95).

Symbolic of the theme, the cover features a photo shot by Satellite Beach’s John Kraus of the Falcon 9 booster coming in for one of its fiery, yet controlled, landings at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Landing Zone 1.

Now the senior space editor for Ars Technica, Berger has been covering the industry for two decades, including 17 years with the Houston Chronicle. In “Reentry,” similar to “Liftoff,” he again uncovers SpaceX’s highs and lows with touches of humor and strain that are part of the machine that Musk’s company has become.

Executives at startup Stoke Space, which aims to develop its own reusable rocket launching from Cape Canaveral, recently said “Liftoff” is required reading for all of their more than 100 employees. That story goes through SpaceX’s early days to reach success with its Falcon 1 rocket. read more