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Back To The Future: Astronauts Return To American Launchpad In Sleek New Ride
After nearly a decade of NASA paying Russia to send humans into orbit, astronauts are about to launch from American soil once more, this time in a hypermodern vehicle.
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The most dramatic update to the new Dragon capsule are eight SuperDraco thrusters, seen here in full blaze during a 2015 test, capable of launching the vehicle at missile-like speeds away from its Falcon 9 rocket.
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A SuperDraco being tested in 2014.
The thrusters can blast the dragon to safety if the Falcon 9 malfunctions in flight or while sitting on the launchpad.
The thrusters can blast the dragon to safety if the Falcon 9 malfunctions in flight or while sitting on the launchpad.
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A combination photo capturing the moment the Crew Dragon exploded away from its rocket during a January 2020 test. Parachutes carried the unmanned capsule to a safe splashdown off the Florida coast.
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The Crew Dragon’s launch is set to carry veteran NASA astronauts and close friends Bob Behnken (left) and Doug Hurley to the ISS. Hurley, whose call sign is “Chunky,” is a former U.S. Marine lieutenant and military test pilot. Behnken is a colonel in the U.S. Air Force who piloted the F-22 Raptor stealth fighter jet.