A SpaceX rocket carrying NASA astronauts will fly over Notts tonight - here's how to see it

You can also watch the launch online

Stargazers across Nottinghamshire are in for another treat tonight as entrepreneur Elon Musk's private spaceflight company blasts NASA astronauts into space for the very first time.

Over the past few months, lockdown measures introduced as a result of the coronavirus pandemic have led to clearer night skies thanks to less particulate matter and light pollution.

This has given way to some wondrous sights as people look into the ether for respite from the world around us, including super-moons, the Lyrid meteor shower, the International Space Station and Elon Musk's very own Starlink satellites.

Tonight (May 27), those looking towards the sky will be able to spot SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket blasting astronauts Robert Behnken, 49, and Douglas Hurley, 53, into space.

If you spot the rocket over Notts, feel free to email joseph.locker@reachplc.com to share you best pictures and videos.

What is the mission?

The mission - coined Demo-2 - will be the very first time a private company has assisted NASA in getting astronauts out of Earth's atmosphere.

It will also be the first time since 2011 that astronauts have been launched from US soil into full orbit, the closest launch was in 2018 when Virgin Galactic tested its VSS Unity craft which reached a height of 51 miles before coming back down to land.

The US has been using Russia's Soyuz crafts to fire its astronauts into space since winding down the use of NASA's Space Shuttle almost a decade ago.

The main aim of the mission, NASA says, is to determine whether or not the SpaceX craft is safe enough to use.

Falcon 9, which will be carrying the Crew Dragon spacecraft with Mr Behnken and Mr Hurley inside, will lift off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at around 4.33pm EDT, or 9.33pm BST.

It is the same launch pad used by Saturn V, which took astronauts to the moon for the first time in history.

It will take just 12 minutes for them to reach initial orbit and will eventually dock with the ISS.

Mr Behnken worked for the US Air Force before NASA and is the mission’s joint operations commander.

He will take responsibility for the docking and undocking of the Crew Dragon.

Mr Hurley, a former fighter pilot who is now the spacecraft commander for this mission, will be in charge of the launch, landing and recovery.

When will it be visible here and what will the weather be like?

Around 15 minutes after launching, Falcon 9 will be visible from Nottinghamshire and the rest of the UK between 9.45-9.50pm.

According to Meteorwatch, the spacecraft will look like a collection of bright stars moving across the sky.

The website says: "The craft will pass over the UK from a westerly direction and will head east. It may be visible lower in the southern part of the sky as it flies past for around 3 – 4 minutes."

Those familiar with Elon Musk's private spaceflight company will already know what makes the pioneering Falcon 9 rocket so special.

After liftoff, the rocket will separate into its 'first stage', with the booster returning to Earth where it will land on a ship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.

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Typically, the first stage of a rocket crashes into the sea, but SpaceX developed its boosters to be recycled and used again, keeping costs down and limiting waste.

The 'second stage' will push the astronauts further into space, and Crew Dragon will then separate for its final push to the ISS.

Behnken and Hurley will then use the craft's manoeuvring thrusters to dock with the space station.

The rocket launch is heavily dependent on weather conditions however, and earlier reports from NASA suggest there is a 40 percent chance of favourable weather conditions.

It has however been given the final 'go'.

The weather in Nottingham, according the the Met Office, should provide acceptable viewing conditions.

Visibility is currently listed as 'very good', despite some clouds forming around 9pm.

The chance of rain is below five percent.

Previous SpaceX missions seen in the skies above Nottinghamshire

It is not the first time the Falcon 9 craft has been seen thundering into orbit above the county.

Residents in Clifton and Bingham managed to capture the rocket flying into orbit back in April, when it was delivering a payload of 60 Starlink satellites into space.

The satellites, developed by Elon Musk and SpaceX, will eventually provide broadband coverage to remote areas of the world.

These can be seen in the night sky on occasion, with some astronomers arguing their brightness obscures views of distant planets and galaxies.

However, SpaceX is now testing a non-reflective surface which will dim them, particularly as up to 40,000 could eventually be in orbit.

You can watch tonight's launch here, before it can be seen in the UK.

If the launch does not go ahead due to weather issues, it may be postponed until Saturday.