Why the Dragon Spacecraft Success Opens a New Era In Space Exploration [Video]

The Dragon spacecraft is now the first private spaceship to achieve orbit and return safely to Earth. It just splashed down inside the Pacific Ocean, after a really perfect mission. This can be a huge milestone within the history of space exploration.

After aborting the first launch attempt simply by a false telemetry reading, the Falcon 9 rocket zoomed up flawlessly from Cape Canaveral ( ” >watch video here ), flying over the Atlantic Ocean and reaching orbit in under ten minutes. Seconds after shutting down its second stage, the Dragon spacecraft separated from the Falcon 9 rocket.

Dragon orbited the planet gathering crucial data for future missions. Then it re-entered the Earth’s atmosphere, opening its parachute and splashing gracefully inside the Pacific Ocean, right on its projected target-this hasn’t happened since the Apollo years! The SpaceX crew has already recovered the capsule.

But the real thing this is the indisputable fact that this feat-launching a spacecraft capable of carrying seven astronauts no less and returning it safely to Earth-has been never achieved outside of state agencies. By completing this mission, SpaceX has demonstrated that anybody could fly a spaceship into orbit in a reasonable way. Dragon will eventually become how to ferry both astronauts and cargo to the International Space Station and other private space stations in orbit, like the ones now being built by Bigelow .

This is a new beginning inside the age of space exploration. Congratulations, SpaceX.

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This post is tagged: cape canaveral, history of space exploration, indisputable fact, international space station, private spaceship