SpaceX mission with two passengers on board, which aims to return two astronauts who from months have been stuck on the International Space Station (ISS), launched last night, AFP reported, quoted by NOVA.
The launch of the Falcon 9 rocket was scheduled for 1:17 p.m. (8:17 p.m. Bulgarian time) from Cape Canaveral, Florida, NASA announced.
A new launch pad was to be used for a manned mission for the first time. On board are NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov.
When they return from the space station in February, they will bring back two veteran astronauts - Butch Wilmore and Sonny Williams - whose stay on the ISS was extended for months by problems with their Boeing-built Starliner spacecraft. ;.
The newly developed “Starliner“ was making its first manned flight when it delivered Wilmore and Williams to the ISS in June.
They were only supposed to stay there for 8 days, but after problems arose with the Starliner's propulsion system during the flight there, NASA was forced to make a radical change of plans.