Elon Musk’s SpaceX company successfully launched off a rocket ship consisting of two NASA astronauts. The rocket ship is on its way from the state of Florida to the International Space Station making it’s impression as the dawn of a new age in commercial space travel.
In almost a decade there was a blastoff from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, this is very significant for the United States as it was launched from there, it brought new hope for the humans to launch into the orbit.
Falcon 9 launches Crew Dragon on its first flight with @NASA astronauts on board! pic.twitter.com/FUd0SSRKud
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 30, 2020
Falcon 9 lifts off from historic Launch Complex 39A and sends Crew Dragon to orbit on its first flight with @NASA astronauts to the @space_station pic.twitter.com/UOoaKiQaFk
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 31, 2020
NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, aged 49 and 53 respectively, launched at 3:22 pm EDT Saturday atop the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
With the take off, SpaceX became the first private company to launch people into orbit, this was previously accomplished by three governments: the US, Russia and China. The reusable, gumdrop-shaped capsule called Crew Dragon, would now take the two American astronauts to a 19-hour journey to the International Space Station (ISS). The spacecraft is scheduled to dock with the ISS at 10:29 am EDT on Sunday.
President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and thousands of American citizens had gathered to watch the launch live on a Sunday afternoon.
“I’m so proud of the people, of NASA, public and private. When you see a sight like that, it’s incredible. When you hear that sound — the roar — you can imagine how dangerous it is,” said Trump.
Congressman Kevin McCarthy said “the launch of the spacecraft is testament to American ingenuity and our country’s profound ability to overcome challenges as they arise, particularly in the age of COVID-19″.
In the US more than 1 million people have lost their lives to the coronavirus and more than 40 million people have lost their job. The pandemic has nearly destroyed the economy and pushed it into a recession. The launch of the space craft gave the Americans a reason to celebrate.
