SpaceX

The Dragon 2 spacecraft starts its CRS-28 mission blasting off atop a Falcon 9 rocket (Image NASA TV)

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A little while ago, the SpaceX Dragon 2 spacecraft blasted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in its CRS-28 (Cargo Resupply Service 28) mission, also referred to as SPX-28. After almost exactly 12 minutes it separated successfully from the rocket’s last stage and went en route. This is the 28th mission for the Dragon/Dragon 2 spacecraft to resupply the International Space Station with various cargoes and then return to Earth, again with various cargoes.

The Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft recovered at the end of its Ax-2 mission (Photo courtesy SpaceX)

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A few hours ago, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft concluded its Ax-2 mission by splashing down without problems. On board were Peggy Whitson, Ali AlQarni, John Shoffner, and Rayyanah Barnawi, who ended this completely private space mission in the Atlantic Ocean after leaving the International Space Station about 12 hours earlier. Shortly after splashing down, SpaceX’s recovery ship went to retrieve the Freedom and its crew to transport them to the coast.

The Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft begins the Ax-2 mission blasting off atop a Falcon 9 rocket (Image NASA TV)

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A little while ago, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft docked with the International Space Station’s Harmony module performing the first part of its private mission Axiom Mission 2 or simply Ax-2. It blasted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center when it was afternoon in the USA. After verifying that the pressure is properly balanced, the hatch will be opened to allow crew members to enter the Station.

A little bit more than one year after the Ax-1 mission, a new collaboration between public entities, which this time besides NASA includes the Saudi Space Commission, and private ones, sent new astronauts to the International Space Station to conduct a series of scientific experiments on behalf of entities that generally can’t carry out studies in microgravity conditions.

Super Heavy Booster 7 blasting off with Starship 24 atop (Image courtesy SpaceX)

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SpaceX conducted the flight test of its prototype Super Heavy rocket and Starship, launched from Boca Chica, Texas. This is the first test that saw the whole system of Elon Musk’s company which should revolutionize space travel with an unprecedented transport capacity and being totally reusable. In this case, however, these are prototypes with the Super Heavy identified as Booster 7 and Starship identified as Starship 24 or Ship24 or simply S24 which don’t have the safety requirements needed to conduct controlled landings. The test ended after almost 4 minutes with the explosion of both vehicles.

The Dragon cargo spacecraft departing the International Space Station in its CRS-27 mission (Image NASA TV)

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A few hours ago, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft ended its CRS-27 (Cargo Resupply Service 27) mission for NASA splashing down smoothly off the Florida Coast. The Dragon left the International Space Station a few hours earlier. For SpaceX, this was the 7th mission of the 2nd contract with NASA to transport supplies to the Station with the new version of the Dragon cargo spacecraft.

Shortly after the splashdown, SpaceX’s recovery ship went to retrieve the Dragon to transport it to the coast. The cargo brought back to Earth will be delivered to NASA within a few hours. The Dragon spacecraft reached the International Space Station on March 16, 2023.