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Added on the 16/09/2021 02:14:02 - Copyright : AFPTV - First images
The first all-civilian crew to be sent into Earth's orbit enters the Dragon Crew capsule atop SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, which is launching from NASA's Kennedy Center in Florida. Chris Sembroski, Dr Sian Proctor, Jared Isaacman and Hayley Arceneaux ride Tesla vehicles to the launch pad and take in the view before getting strapped into the capsule. IMAGES
Two US astronauts who arrived at the International Space Station aboard Boeing's Starliner will have to return home with rival SpaceX, NASA says. "NASA has decided that Butch and Sunny will return with Crew 9 next February, and that Starliner will return uncrewed," NASA administrator Bill Nelson tells reporters. The return of Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams has been delayed by thruster malfunctions of the Boeing spacecraft. SOUNDBITE
China's Shenzhou-18 mission takes off from a launch centre in Jiuquan, in the northern Gansu province, carrying three astronauts to the country's Tiangong space station. The three are set to replace the space station's current crew and will remain in orbit around the Earth for six months. IMAGES
United Launch Alliance (ULA)’s brand new Vulcan rocket, carrying NASA’s first Peregrine Lunar Lander by private firm Astrobotic Technology, blasts off successfully for the first time from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. IMAGES
SpaceX's 'Starship' rocket, the largest ever built, takes off from the space company's Texas launch site. CEO Elon Musk hopes the ship will one day colonize Mars and NASA is awaiting a modified version to land humans on the Moon. The first test in April ended in a spectacular explosion over the Gulf of Mexico. IMAGES