“Let’s Light this Candle”
Written by Site Hub on May 31, 2020
Yesterday, for the first time since 2011, a rocket ship launched from US soil in Cape Canaveral.
Built by SpaceX, a commercial space travel company owned by billionaire Elon Musk, carried 2 NASA astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken the International Space Station.
Hurley quoted Alan Shepard’s famous words on America’s first manned spaceflight in 1961, saying “Let’s light this candle!” as he and his co pilot were shot into the sky in a Dragon capsule on top of a Falcon 9 rocket.
Liftoff took effect at 3:22 p.m. and safely sent the brave men into orbit, 250 miles above sea level. The astronauts are expected to reach the ISS Sunday afternoon, where they will join 3 other crew members. After 4 months, they will return to Earth in a splashdown re-entry, something that hasn’t happened since the 1970’s.
Jim Bridenstine, SpaceX’s top official says he hopes the launch will give Americans something to unite behind and witness amid the ongoing health crisis and racial unrest.
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