Four astronauts left the US this afternoon for the International Space Station. They are the first space explorers to be transported with a rocket that has already been used in such a flight.
The launch of the space company SpaceX ‘s Falcon 9 was successful. The crew consists of two Americans, a Japanese and a French. The latter, Thomas Pesquet, is the first astronaut of the European space agency ESA to travel in a capsule from SpaceX to the ISS. The flight takes approximately 24 hours.
Elon Musk’s space company is bringing astronauts to the ISS for the third time. It uses the same missile and capsule that were used in the previous mission.
Watch Crew-2 astronauts check in LIVE from space!
— NASA (@NASA) April 23, 2021
👀 Take a look inside @SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Endeavour currently on its way to the @Space_Station. pic.twitter.com/ajdTjhDnqs
Costs can be reduced considerably by reusing such equipment. This cost-cutting operation was also referenced on the license plates of the Tesla cars that transported the astronauts. It contained the words “recycle”, “reuse” and “reduce”.
After launch, the Falcon 9’s so-called booster landed safely on a SpaceX drone ship.
The astronauts’ mission takes about six months. They will conduct scientific experiments hundreds of kilometers above the earth.