SpaceX's 1st astronaut launch a 'unique moment' for the US, says NASA

Reuters photo

Billionaire businessman Elon Musk-owned company SpaceX is all set to launch astronauts back into orbit from the US on Wednesday (May 27) but world's premier space agency NASA on Tuesday (May 26) already announced the target date for the next crewed mission of the company - August 30.

According to NASA, the launch date of the next crewed mission will depend largely on the results of SpaceX's historic Demo-2 launch on Wednesday. The iftoff is set for 4:33 p.m. EDT (2033 GMT). 

The launch of Demo-2 will be a historic event because it will be SpaceX's first launch of a Crew Dragon capsule carrying astronauts. It will also e a significant moment for human spaceflight of NASA, which has been taking help from Russia for its crewed mission since the retirement of its own space shuttles in 2011. 

"Our country has been through a lot. But this is a unique moment where all of America can take a moment and look at our country do something stunning again. This is a unique opportunity to bring all of America together in one moment in time and say, 'Look at how bright the future is.' That's what this launch is all about," NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said at a press conference.

According to Bridenstine, the Demo-2 test flight of SpaceX will have far-reaching implications far beyond low Earth orbit. It is to be noted that NASA's Artemis program, which aims to take humans at the south pole of moon in 2024, is totally dependent on collaborations between NASA and private companies.

"We are proving out a business model, a public-private partnership business model that ultimately will enable us to go to the moon, this time sustainably," Bridenstine said. 

This Crew Demo-2 mission is historic considering the fact that it will mark the first launch of astronauts on an American rocket from American soil since the last space shuttle mission in 2011.

"SpaceX and @NASA completed a full rehearsal of launch day activities with @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug ahead of Crew Demo-2," SpaceX said in a tweet.

NASA has also tweeted saying that the Launch America mission passed its final major review and teams received the “go” to proceed toward launch on May 27.