SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket has successfully begun its mission to reach the International Space Station.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX successfully launched two NASA astronauts into orbit, Saturday, aboard the company’s Falcon 9 rocket.
Joe Raedle / Getty Images
“This is the culmination of a dream,” Musk told CBS News. “This is a dream come true. In fact, it feels surreal. If you asked me when starting SpaceX if this would happen, I’d be like, one percent — 0.1 percent chance.”
The 19-hour trip to the International Space Station is the first voyage to space launched in the United States since 2011. The crew left the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 3:23 PM, making them the first to ride a commercially owned spacecraft into orbit.
“This is everything America has to offer in its purest form,” NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said. “And times are tough right now. There is no doubt. We’ve got the coronavirus pandemic, we’ve got other challenges as a country.
“But I hope this moment in time is an opportunity for everybody to reflect on humanity and what we can do when we work together, when we strive and when we achieve,” he added.
President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence were in attendance. “I think this is such a great inspiration for our country,” Trump told reporters after the launch.
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