Space X to launch its first operational mission to the space station

SpaceX has launched four astronauts towards to the International Space Station aboard the Dragon spacecraft on a six-month mission, Nasa’s first full-fledged mission sending a crew into orbit on a privately owned spacecraft.

In 2019, SpaceX demonstrated the successful landing of rocket boosters. © SpaceX

Three Americans – Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover and Shannon Walker – and Japan’s Soichi Noguchi will blast off on November 15 from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on the first of three scheduled Dragon flights over the course of the coming year.

(From left) Astronauts Shannon Walker, Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins and Soichi Noguchi (R), are pictured wearing SpaceX spacesuits ahead of the Crew Dragon launch NASA/AFP

In a test flight in May, SpaceX had successfully demonstrated its capability to transport astronauts to the ISS and bring them back safely to the Earth in a Dragon spacecraft.

Earlier this week, NASA certified SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon for crew missions to and from the ISS. The Crew Dragon became the first spacecraft to be certified by NASA since the Space Shuttle nearly 40 years ago.

🚀 We’re sending four astronauts to the @Space_Station on a U.S. rocket from U.S. soil at 7:27pm ET on Sunday, Nov. 15.

Here’s how you can watch our #LaunchAmerica coverage: https://t.co/PTHOoEbLO0 pic.twitter.com/V2MNT2aWCQ

— NASA (@NASA) November 14, 2020

“I’m extremely proud to say we are returning regular human spaceflight launches to American soil on an American rocket and spacecraft,” NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said.

“This certification milestone is an incredible achievement from NASA and SpaceX that highlights the progress we can make working together with commercial industry.”

NASA turned to SpaceX and Boeing after shuttering the checkered Space Shuttle program in 2011, which failed in its main objectives of making space travel affordable and safe.

The agency will have spent more than $8 billion on the Commercial Crew program by 2024, with the hope that the private sector can take care of NASA's needs in "low Earth orbit" so it is freed up to focus on return missions to the Moon and then on to Mars.

NASA’s human spaceflight certification of SpaceX for operational astronaut flights to and from the @space_station is the culmination of years of development, testing, and training → https://t.co/nTt12SNKF1 https://t.co/XcbfFx4qce

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 10, 2020

SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk in 2002, has leapfrogged its much older rival Boeing, whose program has floundered after a failed test of its uncrewed Starliner last year.

Sunday’s launch will be attended by US Vice President Mike Pence.

- with AFP