SpaceX Dragon, the first space capsule with a civilian crew, has not taken even 24 hours to dock with the International Space Station.
Elon Musk is already today one of the tycoons who contributes the most to space exploration in the world. Thanks to his multi-billion dollar company SpaceX, the world outside of Earth seems to be getting closer to us with each expedition. The goal of Musk and the company is bringing citizens closer to the infinite possibilities of space, and that is exactly why he has made history again. The company has carried out the first space trip in a capsule where only civilians traveled.
We are talking about the SpaceX Dragon Capsule, which carried NASA commander and pilot Michael López-Alegría (the only aerospace industry professional on board) and business tycoons Larry Connor, Eytan Stibbe and Mark Pathy. The capsule landed a few days ago on the International Space Station, and has made history as the first aircraft to arrive at the Station with an all-civilian crewexcept for the commander.
The mission, under the name of AX-1, has the objective of carrying out different scientific tests and conduct a new model of business activities outside of Earth. When they return to our planet, they will bring back for analysis a series of scientific material that NASA has been working with in recent months.
The journey took just 20 hours, even less than some international flight itineraries.
The trip to the station was only 20 hours from takeoff, little more than some transatlantic connecting flight itineraries. The SpaceX Dragon capsule had a problem that prevented docking to the Station where almost 45 minutes were lost fixing the problem, so the trip should have been even shorter.
Obviously, being able to afford a seat on this type of trip is up to very few, but considering the success of this mission, many wonder how long it is before civilian space travel is a reality. The problem currently is that not just anyone can enter the International Space Stationbut who knows if in the future we will be able to send into space a space station for recreational use that can be traveled from Earth.
SpaceX wants to continue bringing space closer to citizens, and Musk has already said on occasion that space exploration is one of the topics that most interests him. While NASA will continue to offer an approach to space more linked to exploration and study, SpaceX aims to try to bring all that closer to the public. If in a few years costs are lowered and routes are perfected, we could soon speak of the birth of “space tourism”.
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