SpaceX launches 4 NASA astronauts to ISS on recycled Crew Dragon rocket | WATCH

At 5:49 am EST, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule lifted off from Kennedy Launch Centre in Florida.  The launch was accompanied by a smooth countdown from NASA experts, who along with SpaceX founder Elon Musk anxiously anticipated the completion of all stages of the private firm’s crewed mission. . The Crew -2 mission is set to ferry two astronauts from NASA, one from the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and another one from European Space Agency (ESA) to ISS.

NASA Live Streamed the whole event on its official YouTube channel. In his final moments on earth, Mission commander Shane Kimbrough said, “Off the Earth, for the Earth, Endeavour is ready to go”. The astronauts then briefly clasped each other’s hands as the reused rocket lifted off.  As the Endeavour capsule reached orbit, viewers heard an overjoyed Kimbrough saying, “It’s great to be back in space.” Along with Kimbrough, pilot Megan McArthur, Crew-2’s specialist Thomas Pesquet, and the flight’s engineer Akihiko Hoshide is also part of the mission.

SpaceX's third crewed flight

The mission dubbed Crew-2 marks the second operational mission under its Commercial Crew Programme which was launched with an aim to end the US’ decade-long dependence on Russian rockets. The first mission flew in May 2020 and carried Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley. 

The SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket are set to be launched from Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida and then dock on the ISS port. This will be Crew Dragon's second flight since last year when it had carried NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to and from the space station for the Demo-2 test flight. The mission, called Crew-2, involves US astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, along with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)'s Akihiko Hoshide, and the European Space Agency (ESA)'s Thomas Pesquet, who is French.

SpaceX Crew 2 astronauts have already begun to quarantine themselves to take utmost precautions while they are still on land. Now, if everything goes as planned, the rocket will drop the SpaceX Crew 2 astronauts at the International Space Station within 23 hours.

Image Credits: NASA/ESA