SpaceX’s Inspiration4 launch was preceded by a special on Netflix about the mission. Will you be able to watch the launch live on Netflix too? The answer is yes, but with a caveat. It’s not available on the streaming platform. Instead, the streaming video of Netflix’s coverage is on YouTube and embedded in this story below. If you’re wanting to watch on other streaming platforms like Hulu or Amazon Prime, those options are not available.
Here’s what you need to know.
You Can Watch the Launch Live on Netflix’s YouTube Channel Below
While you can watch the SpaceX launch live courtesy of Netflix, you can’t see the launch live on the Netflix streaming platform itself. A special video released by Netflix on September 15 explained that the live launch is going to be available on Netflix YouTube. You can watch Netflix’s special live coverage of the launch itself in the video below. The coverage begins at around 7 p.m. Central, which is about an hour before the launch window opens at 8:02 p.m. Eastern.
Then on September 30, you’ll get to see a special fifth episode about the crew’s return home. This is described as a feature-length finale.
Here’s the screenshot that Netflix shared on YouTube explaining exactly how Netflix’s live launch is going to work:
YouTube/Netflix
Netflix explained on its YouTube channel:
Join Karamo and Soledad O’Brien for a special livestream event as we countdown to the launch of Inspiration4, the first all-civilian mission into orbit, taking off from Kennedy Space Center. Stay tuned for an all-access pass behind the historic mission featuring special guests and exclusive segments. Be part of the conversation of this historic event, by using #CountdownNetflix COUNTDOWN: INSPIRATION4 MISSION TO SPACE, the first Netflix documentary series to cover an event in near real-time, boldly captures the most ambitious step to date in the rapidly-developing age of civilian space exploration. With exclusive access to the trailblazing mission, the unprecedented series will premiere in five parts, taking viewers behind the scenes with the four crew members who are raising funds and awareness for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. From their
selection and intensive months-long commercial astronaut training, to the intimate moments leading up to liftoff, their dream opportunity becomes a reality – with all the mental, physical, and emotional challenges that come along with it. The final episode, which premieres just days after the mission is completed, will capture the historic launch and the crew’s journey into space, culminating in their triumphant splashdown and return to Earth. The series is produced by TIME Studios, Known and Words & Pictures. Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space Episodes 1-4 are now streaming, the feature-length finale will premiere in late September.
Space.com reported that Netflix’s event will include celebrity guests and astronauts participating in an online sendoff. The event will be hosted by Soledad O’Brien and Karamo of “Queer Eye,” along with Time’s Jeffrey Kluger reporting live from Kennedy Space Center, and more.
The Event Will Also Be Streamed by SpaceX
You can also watch the launch via a SpaceX live stream below.
This live stream will actually start several hours before the launch window — and several hours before Netflix’s event kicks off.
SpaceX wrote on YouTube about the video:
SpaceX is targeting Wednesday, September 15 at 8:02 p.m. EDT (Thursday, September 16 at 00:02 UTC) for launch of the Inspiration4 mission – the world’s first all-civilian human spaceflight to orbit – aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft from historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Approximately three days after liftoff, Dragon and the Inspiration4 crew will splash down at one of several possible landing sites off the Florida coast.
SpaceX’s webcast for launch of the Inspiration4 mission will go live about 4 hours before liftoff.
Inspiration4 is commanded by Jared Isaacman, founder and CEO of Shift4 Payments and an accomplished pilot and adventurer. Joining him are Medical Officer Hayley Arceneaux, a physician assistant at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and pediatric cancer survivor; Mission Specialist Chris Sembroski, an Air Force veteran and aerospace data engineer; and Mission Pilot Dr. Sian Proctor, a geoscientist, entrepreneur, and trained pilot.
Netflix Is the Only Streaming Giant Hosting the Launch
If you were hoping to catch the launch on Hulu or Amazon Prime video streaming services, those options aren’t available. Only Netflix is streaming the launch, and even Netflix isn’t streaming the launch on its platform. Rather, it’s streaming on YouTube.
There’s a small chance that if a TV network decides to cover the launch live, then that might also be available on Hulu Live, the premier Hulu tier. However, that’s not a guaranteed option. You’d be better off watching Netflix’s or SpaceX’s stream in one of the two embedded videos above.
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