CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A historic week lies ahead for NASA and SpaceX as they are preparing to send astronauts to the International Space Station.
This mission, named "Demo-2," will launch a Falcon 9 rocket with a Crew Dragon capsule carrying NASA astronauts to space for the first time since the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011.
Since then, NASA has relied on Russia's Soyuz rocket to keep an American presence on the ISS.
Wednesday's launch will be a culmination of many years of work to bring human spaceflight back to America.
In 2014, NASA selected Boeing and SpaceX to develop a spacecraft with crew capabilities. This was the first time NASA has ever contracted private companies to do so.
In August of 2018, astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert (Bob) Behnken were selected to be the first astronauts to ride the Crew Dragon.
Both astronauts are spaceflight veterans. Behnken was a crew member on Space Shuttle mission STS-123 and flew as a Mission Specialist on STS-130.
Hurley was the pilot on STS-127 in 2009, and flew on Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-135, the final Shuttle flight before it was retired.
This is not the first time a Crew Dragon has gone to space. In March of last year, Demo-1 sent an unmanned Dragon capsule to the ISS where it successfully docked and returned to earth.
Demo-2 is set to liftoff at 3:33 p.m. CDT from Cape Canaveral, Florida this Wednesday, May 27.
This mission will test Dragon's spaceflight capabilities and is the final milestone for SpaceX to have Dragon certified for operational crew missions. That mission, which will be named "Crew-1," is currently planned for late 2020 or early 2021.
Weather, of course, is a factor when it comes to rocket launches. Currently, the weather is 40% favorable for liftoff on Wednesday.
There is concern over the thickness of the cloud layer, as well as what as known as the "cumulus cloud rule" which makes sure the Falcon 9 rocket isn't flying through turbulent air.
A backup launch date is available on Saturday, May 30 at 2:22 p.m. CDT.
Be sure to check the NewsWest 9 Facebook page on launch day for a live stream of the launch!