NASA, SpaceX to launch two American astronauts to ISS on May 27, first time in a decade

National Aeronautics Space Agency (NASA) has announced to launch two American Astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) through a rocket built by SpaceX. According to reports, Bob Behnken and Douglass Hurley will fly on SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft, lifting off on a Falcon 9 rocket at 4:32 p.m. EDT May 27 from Florida. 

Reportedly, the launch will mark the first flight of NASA crews from the US since 2011 and the first launch of a rocket owned by a private company SpaceX- founded by Elon Musk. 

About the mission launch

According to reports, on May 27, the Crew Dragon will accelerate the two astronauts to approximately 17,000 mph and put it on an intercept course with the ISS. Once they will be in the orbit, the crew and SpaceX mission control will verify how the spacecraft is performing. Reportedly, the crew will be able to dock the spacecraft in 24 hours.

Further, once it is docked successfully, the two astronauts will become members of the Expedition 63 crew where will perform tests on Crew Dragon in addition to conducting research and other tasks with the space station crew. However, the specific mission duration is still not determined. Once the mission is concluded, the Crew Dragon will depart the space station and re-enter the Earth's atmosphere and the crew will be picked up at sea by SpaceX's Go Navigator recovery vessel and return to Cape Canaveral.

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About the astronauts

Bob Behnken and Douglass Hurley were among the first astronauts to begin working and training on SpaceX's next-generation human space vehicle. They were selected for their extensive test pilot and flight experience, including several missions on the space shuttle.

According to reports, Behnken is assigned as the joint operations commander for the mission. He will be responsible for activities such as rendezvous, docking, and undocking, as well as Demo-2 activities while the spacecraft is docked to the space station. Meanwhile, Hurley has been appointed as the spacecraft commander for Demo-2. He will be responsible for activities such as launch, landing, and recovery.

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Three astronauts set off to ISS

Meanwhile, three astronauts set off on their mission to the International Space Station (ISS) from the Russian-operated Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Thursday, April 9. According to reports, while two astronauts - Anatoly Ivanishin and Ivan Vagner belong to Russia's Roscosmos space agency, the third astronaut - Chris Cassidy belongs to NASA. 

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(With ANI Inputs)