SpaceX's Crew Dragon has completed a fiery emergency escape test, the last major milestone in a years-long testing program, ahead of its first astronaut mission
The capsule was launched — without people on board — atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 10:30 am ET on Sunday. About 84 seconds after liftoff, Crew Dragon intentionally ejected itself from the rocket to simulate how it would carry passengers to safety if something goes awry during launch.Sunday's launch came after bad weather on Saturday forced a 24-hour delay.
— Elon Musk January 19, 2020 It ended up being"a picture perfect mission," Musk said during a post-launch press conference."It went as well as one could possibly expect."Read MoreThe first astronaut mission could happen as soon April, he said, adding that the capsule that will be used for that historic mission will be ready in February or March.
— Nick Hague January 19, 2020 Crew Dragon's first astronaut flight, codenamed DM-2, will mark NASA's first human spaceflight mission in nearly a decade and the first-ever crewed mission for SpaceX in its 18-year history.Two NASA astronauts are selected to be Crew Dragon's first passengers: Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley, both of whom are former military test pilots and veterans of space shuttle missions.
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