A New Era of Space-Flight

If you are a space nerd like me, then get ready for adrenaline rush and goosebumps because A new page in the history was filled on Saturday, May 30th, with the successful launch of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, carrying 2 NASA astronauts to the ISS. It was the first launch of astronauts on American rockets and spacecraft, from Cape Canaveral, Florida, since July 8th 2011.

After nearly twenty years of effort, Elon Musk’s aerospace company, SpaceX, successfully launched its first two people into orbit, ushering in a new era of human spaceflight in the United States. SpaceX is now the first company to send passengers to orbit on a privately made vehicle.

The two astronauts, veteran NASA fliers Bob Behnken and boarded the spacecraft called the Crew Dragon, the capsule is designed to take people to and from the International Space Station. The rocket dropped the Crew Dragon off in orbit about 12 minutes later. Now, the pair will spend roughly the next day in orbit before attempting to dock with the International Space Station on Sunday morning.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket also successfully landed on one of the company’s drone ships exactly 09:30 minutes after following takeoff, making for a smooth launch throughout. The first launch attempt of this mission, on Wednesday, May 27th, was postponed due to poor weather conditions less than 17 minutes before launch.

The Crew Dragon is designed to automatically dock with the ISS without any intervention from the crew, though the astronauts will try manually flying the capsule when they approach the station. The two astronauts also have to come home eventually and also to test the Crew Dragon’s ability to return humans safely back to Earth. NASA hasn’t decided when the pair will return back home though it’ll be sometime between the next 6 and 16 weeks. When that decision is made, Behnken and Hurley will hop back into their Crew Dragon capsule and begin their journey back to our blue sphere. The Crew Dragon is equipped to descent, the capsule gently into the Atlantic Ocean. After splashdown, a SpaceX recovery boat will bring back the crew and their capsule back to shore.

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Astronauts Behnken and Hurley

hough this mission is considered a test, it still carries enormous pressure for the United States because the last time people were launched by NASA’s Space Shuttle was 9 years ago. Since then, Russia’s Soyuz rocket is the only vehicle available for crewed flights to the ISS, and just one seat on the shuttle costs NASA about $80 million. The Commercial Crew Program was not only created to end NASA’s reliance on Russia but also to jump-start a new way of doing business at NASA.

A lot is on the shoulder of this mission, if all goes well, the flight could serve as merely the beginning of SpaceX’s journey into human spaceflight. NASA plans to use data collected from this mission to certify the Crew Dragon to perform regular trips to and from the International Space Station with astronauts on board. SpaceX and NASA are already targeting August 30th for the company’s next Crew Dragon flight, which will transport four astronauts: NASA’s Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins, and Shannon Walker, as well as Japan’s Soichi Noguchi.

SpaceX’s aspiration won’t stop with this as the company is currently working on a new rocket called Starship, for the purpose of reaching deep space destinations like the Moon and Mars in future. Today’s success is a step in the right direction for a company aiming to take people deeper into the cosmos.