Boeing's Orbital Flight Test 2
mission to the International Space Station is poised to launch at 6:54 p.m. EDT on May 19 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
This second uncrewed test mission
of the company's Starliner capsule serves as a critical step in NASA's certification of the spacecraft for human spaceflight
OFT-2 will carry more than
500 pounds of cargo to the orbital laboratory, at least 440 pounds of which consists of food and supplies for the station's current crew.
The remaining payloads were
contributed by Boeing and include, among other flight memorabilia, keepsakes such as flags and pins commemorating the United States
Taking its second ride
aboard Starliner will also be a flight test dummy affectionately named Rosie the Rocketeer.
Rosie rode aboard the first
OFT and provided engineers data about G-force exertion on the body during launch.