SpaceX slated to launch next group of American astronauts next month
Astronauts will spend approximately six months on the ISS
Following May's historic launch, SpaceX is poised to ferry a second group of astronauts from U.S. soil next month, NASA announced.
The space agency said on its website it is now targeting a launch for 7:49 p.m. ET on Nov. 14 for the "first crew rotation mission to the International Space Station as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program."
The Crew-1 mission, which will see astronauts fly on SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft, will send up NASA astronauts Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency mission specialist Soichi Noguchi. These astronauts will spend approximately six months on the ISS before coming home.
NASA astronauts Shannon Walker, Victor Glover, and Mike Hopkins, and astronaut Soichi Noguchi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency - who constitute the crew of NASA's Crew-1 mission - inside SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft. Credits: SpaceX
ELON MUSK'S SPACEX STARLINK UNIT WILL PROVIDE FREE INTERNET TO A TEXAS SCHOOL DISTRICT
By comparison, Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken, the first group of astronauts to launch from American soil since 2011, spent slightly more than two months in space, before returning to Earth.
NASA is going to host a teleconference at 4 p.m. ET on Oct. 28 to discuss the pending launch in further detail.
The mission was originally scheduled to launch on Aug. 30, but has faced a number of delays, including technical and logistical issues, Space.com reported.
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In the past, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has said the company will "probably" take its Starlink Internet business public, but only when it has "predictable" and "smooth" revenue growth.
In July, Morgan Stanley said SpaceX could be worth as much as $175 billion if Musk's Starlink Internet service is successful.