Today's mission carries a four-member crew to the International Space Station in a capsule built by the private company Elona Muska. After an orbit of about 27,5 hours into orbit, the astronauts join the International Space Station and begin a six-month stay. Originally, the ship was supposed to start on Sunday, but the launch of the ship was postponed by a day due to bad weather. The nine engines of the Falcon 9 rocket came to life and brightened the night sky as the rocket took off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida over the Atlantic Ocean.

Take-off

And who are these four brave astronauts? Michael S. Hopkins, Shannon Walker, Victor J. Glover of NASA and Soichi Noguchi, Japanese astronaut. About an hour after takeoff, Mission Commander Colonel Hopkins shared how beautiful is the view of the Earth from orbit and then thanked the staff at SpaceXwhich enabled the start.

"It was a hell of a ride," he said, adding that the astronauts spared no smiles and excitement as they took off. In the future, NASA astronauts and anyone else (who has enough money) will be able to buy a ticket in a commercial rocket.

NASA and SpaceX completed a certification process last week that confirms that SpaceX has met all the specifications set for the regular launch of NASA astronauts into orbit. This launch, known as the Crew-1, is a long-planned journey that will take four crew members on a six-month stay on the space station.

A live video stream from NASA showed astronauts in a good mood as they donned their modern SpaceX flight suits. Although assisted by many SpaceX technicians in black uniforms, the astronauts smiled and took pictures with visitors. Shortly after 16 p.m., the astronauts said goodbye to their families and set out for the launch pad.

Who's on board the Crew Dragon?

He is the flight commander 51-year-old Michael S. Hopkins, Colonel of the United States Space Force. He was one of nine astronauts selected by NASA in 2009. He has seen the International Space Station once before, in 2013 and 2014. He spent 166 days in orbit.

Shannon Walker, 55 years old, completed one previous stay at the space station in 2010. Shannon earned a doctorate in space physics from Rice University, where she studied the interaction of the solar wind with the atmosphere of Venus.

Soichi Noguchi, 55 years old, an astronaut from the Japanese space agency JAXA, is taking his third trip into space. He was a member of the crew of the space shuttle Discovery in 2005. During this visit to the International Space Station, he made three spacewalks. In 2009 and 2010, he spent five months in orbit as a member of the space station's crew.

He will begin his first flight into space 44-year-old Victor Glover, which NASA chose as an astronaut in 2013. He will be the first dark-skinned astronaut to be a member of the space station's crew.

Crew (© NASA / Norah Moran)

Unfortunately, Elon Musk could not watch the rocket take off due to a positive test on Covid 19. He was replaced by Gwynne Shotwell, the company's director.

You can watch a 5-hour recording of the preparations and departure of the spaceship here:

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