A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Saturday carrying two astronauts to the International Space Station, marking the first-ever commercial launch of humans into orbit.
Astronauts Douglas Hurley and Robert Behnken are also the first people to lift off into orbit from the United States since the last space shuttle flight in July 2011.
The mission, paid for by NASA, is expected to kick off the next major phase in the privatization of space, which has so far focused on satellite launches. Plans include the launch of private astronauts, the construction of a private space station, and possibly the creation of private missions beyond Earth.
Hurley and Behnken arrived at the ISS’s Harmony port on Sunday, docking at 10:16 a.m. EDT while the spacecraft was flying about 262 miles above the northern border of China and Mongolia. In 2014, NASA commissioned Elon Musk–led SpaceX and aerospace giant Boeing to build launch vehicles capable of carrying humans to the station. Boeing has fallen somewhat behind its rival, with its first mission expected next year if it can work out glitches with its Starliner capsule.
Scroll below to see the historic mission through photos.
