![]() ![]() That allows the Crew Dragon to catch up for docking at 5:10 a.m. When the capsule reaches orbit, it will be directly behind the space station but traveling faster in a lower orbit. The launch is timed to when the space station’s orbit passes over Florida. Musk.)Īfter they arrive at the launchpad, the astronauts board the capsule and spend hours working with mission control to confirm that its systems are ready for flight. (A bit of cross-marketing between SpaceX and Tesla, both run by Mr. They then bid farewell to their families and head out to the launchpad in Tesla Model X S.U.V.s. Hours before the launch, the astronauts start to get into their trademark SpaceX spacesuits with the help of technicians. Eastern time, the astronaut crew was in orbit and beginning a trip to the space station that will last some 23 hours. “We’re going to build a lot of rockets, and then we’re going to probably smash a bunch of them,” Mr. Musk said, the 2024 target was achievable despite the technical challenges. “The thing that’s really important to revolutionize space is a rapidly reusable rocket,” he said. The last four flights have ended in fiery crashes, although one did manage to land in a single piece before exploding a few minutes later. It is trying to perfect a technique whereby Starship very gently belly flops, using air resistance as a brake and then tipping upward just before landing. SpaceX has been launching a series of prototypes from its site in southern Texas, near Brownsville. “Otherwise, it’s like, ‘Hop in, we’re going to Mars - nope, not quite!’” “Obviously, we need to like not be making craters,” he said, and laughed. Musk predictions.) But he then added that Starship could be ready to carry people in a couple of years. (Development of SpaceX rockets and spacecraft have generally taken about twice as long as Mr. Musk noted that he had been “somewhat optimistic” about SpaceX schedules in the past. The space agency had hoped to award contracts to two companies to develop two different landers. “We want to be a multi-planet species.”Ĭurrently, the schedule for the lunar program, Artemis, has astronauts landing on the moon in 2024, a timetable that is widely regarded as unlikely, especially as Congress has not provided as much money for the development of lunar landers as NASA has requested. “We don’t want to be one of those single-planet species,” Mr. He then expressed his hopes for building a permanent base on the moon, then a city on Mars. “It’s a great honor to be chosen by NASA to return to the moon,” Mr. Last week, NASA awarded SpaceX a $2.9 billion contract to build the lander that NASA will use to take astronauts back to the surface of the moon, adapting a giant rocket called Starship that SpaceX has been developing for trips to Mars. But reporter after reporter asked Elon Musk about the moon instead. The Crew-2 astronauts are traveling in the same Endeavour capsule used in the demonstration mission last year.Īt the news conference following Friday’s successful launch of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule, NASA’s press secretary urged everyone to keep questions focused on the Crew-2 mission. Today’s launch was the second operational mission. That mission, Crew-1, launched in November, and the astronauts are still aboard the station, scheduled to return to Earth next week. ![]() Months later, SpaceX conducted what NASA called the first routine operational mission for the Crew Dragon spacecraft with four astronauts onboard. The capsule, named Endeavour, with the two men then splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean in August. SpaceX conducted a demonstration mission with two NASA astronauts, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, a year ago. It is a continuation of a successful effort by the space agency to turn over to the private sector the business of taking people to low-Earth orbit. The mission, Crew-2, is carrying two American, one Japanese and one French astronaut to the International Space Station. A smooth countdown proceeded through the early morning, and even ran ahead of schedule at times. Eastern time, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The third worked like a charm too - a string of successes over the past year that is making human spaceflight look routine, as NASA and Mr. The first two launches of NASA astronauts by Elon Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, worked like a charm. Under darkness, Crew Dragon launched toward the space station. ![]()
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