SpaceX launched astronauts for the first time ever today, making history and beginning a new age of commercial spaceflight. A Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from historic Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on 30 May at 20:22 BST carrying SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule into orbit.
The launch kicked off SpaceX’s landmark Demo-2 mission, which is sending NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station (ISS). Demo-2 marks the return of orbital human spaceflight to US soil after a nearly decade-long absence, and it signals the beginning of a new era in space exploration - one led by commercial companies. “It was incredible,” Hurley radioed SpaceX’s launch control. “Appreciate all the hard work, and thanks for a great ride to space.”