'Safety of crew members is our top priority': NASA chief Bridenstine on aborted mission

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine who had previously hailed the NASA-SpaceX Dragon Crew mission as “Herculean task” announced the postponement of the launch citing "safety" of the crew members. According to him, it was the “top priority” to ensure that US astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken who had already buckled up for the mission were safe. 

Just 16 minutes before the countdown for the ‘historic’ launch was scheduled the begin, the mission was called off due to bad weather conditions and "the danger of lightning". The liftoff has been rescheduled for the “next launch opportunity” on May 30 at 3:22 pm EDT. NASA has also elaborated that even though millions were hoping to witness the giant leap of ‘revolutionising’ the commercial space travel on May 27, the launch window was “instantaneous”. 

The weather conditions had started sounding an alarm hours before the scheduled takeoff at 4:33 pm ET on May 27. However, US astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken had buckled up in the Dragon Crew capsule on the top of 230-foot SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to ‘#LaunchAmerica’. 

From Twitter to YouTube, the event was being live-streamed on all social media platforms with people ready to "usher in the new era since 2011". It was even viewed by US President Donald Trump and his Vice President Mike Pence. However, the mission has now been delayed due to “orbital mechanics” and another attempt to launch the astronauts to space aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule as part of the Demo-2 test flight to the International Space Station will be made on Saturday.

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First crewed mission from the US since 2011

With this mission, NASA would launch its first crewed mission from US soil in almost 10 years (since 2011). This is also the first time that it had allowed a private company like Elon Musk's SpaceX, to run the entire show but the weather conditions delayed the plans. 

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk who was there at the launch had hailed the accomplishment as his “dream come true”. The two NASA astronauts were seen smiling, waving and giving the thumbs up as they debuted in the SpaceX spacesuit and buckled up in the commercially built capsule. 

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine lauded the entire mission as a “herculean task” and called it a “monumental achievement”. It was also revealed that the designing of the SpaceX Dragon capsule was started from scratch at least 12 years ago to travel to the Space Station.  Bridenstine said that NASA let the “commercial industry innovate” and that led to solutions that were ‘undreamed of before’. According to the NASA Administrator, that aspect remains the ‘real success’ of the #LaunchAmerica.

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Image Source: AP