Skip to main content

SpaceX successfully launches historic NASA-crewed mission

NASA and SpaceX have achieved a historic milestone in American spaceflight, successfully launching two astronauts on a journey to the International Space Station (ISS) in the first crewed test flight of the new Crew Dragon capsule.

This is the first time that American astronauts have launched from American soil since the space shuttle program ended in 2011, as well as the first time astronauts have been ferried to space aboard a privately-owned rocket.

Astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley launched from the famous Launch Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center, Cape Canaveral, at 12:22 p.m. PT on Saturday, May 30, with the Crew Dragon capsule set atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Once the rocket’s first stage was no longer required, it separated and fell to Earth where it was caught by SpaceX on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean.

The astronauts have begun their 19-hour journey, scheduled to arrive at the ISS to begin docking at 7:27 a.m. PT on Sunday, May 31. The hatch between the capsule and the station is scheduled to open at 9:45 a.m. PT, at which time Behnken and Hurley will be welcomed by the current ISS crew — NASA astronaut and Commander Chris Cassidy and Roscosmos cosmonauts and Flight Engineers Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner.

artist's concept of a SpaceX Crew Dragon docking with the International Space Station
This artist’s concept shows a SpaceX Crew Dragon docking with the International Space Station as it will during a mission for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX

Behnken and Hurley are expected to spend between one and three months aboard the ISS, performing further tests on the docked capsule as well as assisting the ISS crew with their maintenance tasks and scientific research. The exact length of their stay will depend upon when SpaceX and NASA are ready to perform their next launch, which will be decided once the astronauts arrive safely.

With the test flight completed successfully, SpaceX is expected to soon begin regularly ferrying NASA astronauts between Earth and the ISS as part of the Commercial Crew Program. NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine has spoken about his desire for NASA to become a customer of private companies like SpaceX as part of a robust space-based market in low-Earth orbit, in order for the agency to save money by making use of private sector experience.

NASA had not launched humans into space in a new vehicle from the U.S. since 1981, in a mission called STS-1 which was the first orbital flight of the Columbia orbiter as part of the space shuttle program.

Editors' Recommendations

Georgina Torbet
Georgina is the Digital Trends space writer, covering human space exploration, planetary science, and cosmology. She…
SpaceX says it could fly Starship on Friday, but it depends on one thing
The Starship, comprising the first-stage Super Heavy and the upper-stage Starship spacecraft, on the launchpad at SpaceX's facility in Boca Chica, Texas.

SpaceX has said it could be in a position to perform the second launch of its next-generation Starship rocket this Friday, though it added that it can only happen once it’s received the nod from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

“Starship preparing to launch as early as November 17, pending final regulatory approval," SpaceX said in a recent post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Read more
How to watch SpaceX deliver cargo and experiments to the ISS this week
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon capsule soars upward after lifting off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 14, 2022, on the company’s 25th Commercial Resupply Services mission for the agency to the International Space Station. Liftoff was at 8:44 p.m. EDT. Dragon will deliver more than 5,800 pounds of cargo, including a variety of NASA investigations, to the space station. The spacecraft is expected to spend about a month attached to the orbiting outpost before it returns to Earth with research and return cargo, splashing down off the coast of Florida.

This week will see a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft blast off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and head for the International Space Station (ISS) to deliver supplies and research to the crew there. The launch is scheduled for this Thursday, November 9, after having been rescheduled from earlier in the week to allow time for additional prelaunch checks.

If you'd like to watch the launch and docking of the SpaceX Dragon, NASA will be live-streaming those two events via its NASA TV channel, and we have the details on how to watch below.
What to expect from the launch
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon capsule soars upward after lifting off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 14, 2022, on the company’s 25th Commercial Resupply Services mission for the agency to the International Space Station. Another such launch is scheduled for November 9. NASA/Kim Shiflett

Read more
Spot the space station with this new NASA app
The International Space Station.

The International Space Station (ISS) orbits Earth 16 times a day, which means that at some point it’s likely to pass over your neighborhood.

Despite being 250 miles above our heads, it’s actually easy to spot the ISS thanks to the reflection that occurs when the sun’s rays bounce off its solar arrays. You just need to know when to look up.

Read more