SpaceX set to launch first ever commercial crew to the International Space Station

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(Edited)
If you’re following me here on Hive, chances are that the Bitcoin halving May 11th was the most anticipated date you looked forward to this year. Not for me or my professional and social network. For us, that was not even the most significant date of the month!

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NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley doing a final shot with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and NASA CEO James Frederick Bridenstine source: NASA stream

Instead, most of my social and professional network and I have been looking forward to today's SpaceX’ launch for years. The launch, which will happen on May 27th, 4:33 p.m. EDT, will take NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley to the International Space Station with SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft launched ontop a Falcon 9 from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

You can watch the launch live on NASA's stream here, or SpaceX's stream here.

Fun fact: I've also launched a rocket on the same launchpad myself back in the summer of 2012, when I spent 3 months at NASA Kennedy Space Center during the International Space University’s space program.

You can read the article of that awesome day in one of my earlier blog posts on peakd here (yes, that's me in a pink nala polo to the right).

I was also there when Space Shuttle Atlantis, the 4th and final Space Shuttle, left Kennedy Space Center for the museums. You can read my blog post with pictures of that day on peakd here.


It’s important to stress that this is far more than just an important date and mission for SpaceX, who has made impressive progress with their reusable launch vehicles. This will be the first time in history that a private company launch astronauts into space. Also, it will be the United State's first launch of astronauts to space from its soil since the Shuttle Program ended in July 2011.

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The SpaceX Falcon 9 and Dragon Crew Spacecraft ready for launch at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Launchpad 39A. source: SpaceX Twitter post

Needless to say, I'm excited as hell to watch this. So far, the weather looks good enough for the launch to go through. So most likely, it will happen on time. It won't be without nerves though. As exciting as SpaceX's launches are, it's not the same when there are no humans on bord. Should this go wrong, it will set the progress of commercial human space flight back years if not a decade.

It is also cool to see what the next era of commercial spaceflight looks like. It will be the first time ever that astronauts control a spacecraft with a touch-screen. As SpaceX's Dragon is far more modern than any other traditional space craft. One might have thought that space technologies would be modern and cutting edge almost by definition. But having worked in the space sector myself, I've seen just how conservate and risk averse it can be (for good reasons).

It also helps add a new-age feeling to see the Tesla Model X's take the astronauts to the launchpad :).

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Robert and Douglas get in a Tesla Model X to drive to the launch complex 3 hours before the scheduled launch time

So I hope you will also watch! And share this very historic moment with people on Hive. It's the thing everyone is talking about today :)

Ad Astra Bob and Doug!

Fredrik

You can watch the launch live on NASA's stream here, or SpaceX's stream here.


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26 comments
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Yep .... exciting ... watching it right now :)

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Wow. One third of a million already watching this stream. Thanks for that link. So glad they picked a daytime launch window. I launch rockets in Kerbal Space Program. Close enough to the real thing.

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There is another third watching on SpaceX's stream too :P

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Thousands watching various other third party news streams as well. Apparently, this is a big deal.

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It's pretty much our generation's Moon landing.
Until we get to Mars anyway.

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They cancelled our moon landing... LOL! Damn. Better safe than sorry though.

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Amazing man! I've been to the space centre in Florida and Houston and enjoy learning about Astronomy and space. Definitely going to be tuning in for the launch!

So cool you got to work there for a few months! I'm jealous haha!

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That's really cool! Did you go to the visitor's complex or into the VAB?

I worked at the European Space Agency for 2 years. And before that studied at the International Space University where I got to spend 3 months in Florida at Kennedy :)

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Well the JFK visit in Florida was back in 1999 but from what I remember, we went on a guided tour around and ended up seeing the Saturn V rockets, touched the moon rock that they had on display and remember it being so smooth! I think that may be because like a million people had touched it and it's been smoothed over time haha!

When I went to the Space Station in Houston in 2015, we also had a guided tour and went to Mission Control, saw the Saturn V rockets (again! They were even bigger than I remember from 1999 haha). Loved it!

That's so cool you worked at ESA! I was hoping to do a post-doc or another research project at Open University studying moon rock samples from the Apollo missions as they found some unopened sample canisters from 1971 but a week later, corona pandemic happened and wiped out any hopes with that ambition! Still have the Brian Cox text books to keep me entertained with the science though 😊 Maybe when this is all over and things come back I'll explore that avenue again... We'll see!

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Wow!
Thanks for pointing my eyes Ad Astra when I've been dealing with dirt of the HF23 theft.
I am a huge fan of SpaceX.

I established the Mars Society's Aussie chapter in 1998 and went to a few Mars Society Conventions but missed meeting Musk before he was a super-star by a couple of years.

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Space will always be the sector closest to my heart and where I see my long-term future. There's just something special there in terms of a culture and a passion among people who loves what they do that's so rewarding.

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Yes, while crypto is a new frontier, humanity really needs a new physical frontier, lands to explore without the dead hand of massive regulation and history. This COVID hysteria proves this even more than before.

Have you read Dr Robert Zubrin's latest book The Case for Space?

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Elon Musk may have an erratic personality, but gotta give him credit for this:

"I'm Chief Engineer of the thing. If it goes right, it's credit to the SpaceX/NASA team. Goes wrong, it's my fault."

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they got a mask
we got a mask
when commercial flights for btc?!

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I remember many many many years ago when this idea was in it's conception. There was a billionaire that paid a lot of money back in the day to go to space, I can't remember his name.

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Amazing! That’s the future. If this company was on the stock market today a lot of people would buy a stock as f... Good article!

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Lots watching here in the Uk, well in my social group anyway. Hope they get better luck soon.

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Take some BTC with you! To the moon! :)

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(Edited)

This is such a big step in space exploration. Private sector involvement makes the future of all space programs more secure.

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I think we can only admire individuals like Elon Musk. Brilliant mind, although many people may not like him. I am waiting every single launch and this exact DM2 together with Starship may be the main space topics of 2020.

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This is indeed really cool! I was watching part of the video, it seems like it's been postponed till the 30th? Hopefully they will have good weather for launch then!

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