SpaceX Crew Dragon Launch Heralds 'New Era in Spaceflight,' NASA Chief Says

[240B]

Space.com
By Mike Wall
3 hours ago

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — We may all have just lived through a spaceflight inflection point.

SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule launched atop a Falcon 9 rocket from Pad 39A here at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in the predawn darkness this morning (March 2), kicking off its maiden flight to the International Space Station.

"Tonight was a big night for the United States of America, a great night for NASA," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said this morning during a post-launch press briefing here. "What today really represents is a new era in spaceflight."

The private spaceship isn't carrying any passengers on its 6-day mission, which is known as Demo-1. But a successful flight — fingers crossed — will help pave the way for crewed journeys to and from the orbiting lab aboard Crew Dragon, returning human spaceflight to American soil for the first time since the 2011 retirement of NASA's space shuttle fleet.

(more)
https://www.space.com/spacex-crew-dragon-launch-success-new-spaceflight-era.html

[sneakypete]

I don't care who you are,SpaceX has made some amazing advancements in space flight.

[Elderberry]

The private spaceship isn't carrying any passengers on its 6-day mission

SpaceX Will Have a Slightly Creepy 'Passenger' on Board This Weekend's Launch

https://www.sciencealert.com/spacex-will-have-a-slightly-creepy-passenger-on-board-this-weekend-s-launch

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tweeted a picture early this morning of "Ripley," a dummy the spacetech company plans to send to the International Space Station on board the Crew Dragon space capsule this weekend.

Ripley will be an integral part of Demo-1, the first uncrewed test flight of SpaceX's futuristic passenger craft that could one day ferry astronauts to the ISS – and the dummy, which is already strapped into the Dragon capsule, is packed with sensors.

"We call it a smarty, and her name is Ripley," SpaceX vice president of Build and Flight Reliability Hans Koenigsmann said in yesterday's pre-launch briefing.

The human-sized dummy is covered head to toe in sensors that will tell SpaceX engineers about what the experience travelling to and from the ISS will be like for human astronauts.

Ripley is wearing SpaceX's Commercial Crew space suit with its already iconic black visor and white design that was revealed in August 2017.

[sneakypete]

SpaceX Will Have a Slightly Creepy 'Passenger' on Board This Weekend's Launch


..... her name is Ripley


https://www.sciencealert.com/spacex-will-have-a-slightly-creepy-passenger-on-board-this-weekend-s-launch

@Elderberry

I dunno about anyone else,but I am LOVING that.

[240B]

I don't care who you are,SpaceX has made some amazing advancements in space flight.

Yep. I won't be long now until a trip to the moon and back is just routine. No big deal.

Also, these unmanned cargo ferries will be instrumental in constructing a real true DS9 level space station in this century.
If we can ferry up construction materials and workers, and then ferry the workers right back down at will, that's it. That's all we need to build whatever we want. The first thing built will be crew quarters for the construction crew, then they will come and go and rotate out as needed.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn8b3MDMjQ4

[sneakypete]

Yep. I won't be long now until a trip to the moon and back is just routine. No big deal.

Also, these unmanned cargo ferries will be instrumental in constructing a real true DS9 level space station in this century.
If we can ferry up construction materials and workers, and then ferry the workers right back down at will, that's it. That's all we need to build whatever we want. The first thing built will be crew quarters for the construction crew, then they will come and go and rotate out as needed.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zn8b3MDMjQ4

@240B

And as a wise man once noted,"If it can be done,it WILL be done if there is any way to make money from it."