Last updated on December 8th, 2022 at 02:11 pm
SpaceX became the first private company to send people into space
The first manned flight of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft was supposed to take place on May 27, but 17 minutes before the launch, the launch was canceled due to bad weather conditions.
SpaceX did it. The first manned launch of the spaceship Crew Dragon
The next window was scheduled for today, and this time the launch took place. The Falcon 9 rocket successfully launched from Launch Complex 39A in Florida and a few minutes later delivered the Crew Dragon spacecraft with astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley to orbit at an altitude of 200 km. Crew Dragon will reach the ISS in 19 hours.
Thus, SpaceX once again inscribed itself in history. First of all, the first private company that sent people into space. In addition, this is the first manned launch from the United States since the closure of the Space Shuttle program (in 2011).
This mission, called Demo-2, is the last before NASA approves SpaceX and its spacecraft for the regular delivery of astronauts to the ISS. We also note that the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket successfully landed on a floating platform.
In addition, it is worth recalling that SpaceX made its first launch of the Falcon 1 rocket only 12 years ago – in the fall of 2008 – and the Falcon 9 first took off in 2010.
