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SpaceX: first private flight without an astronaut

Elon Musk launches capsule into orbit: only private citizens on board

SpaceX, the Elon Musk's aerospace company, will go into orbit tomorrow on September 15th with a crew of four private citizens. The Falcon 9 rocket with the Dragon capsule will depart from Kennedy Space Center, Florida. It will be a three-day trip into the space. This is the first of the world flight without an astronaut driving the capsule. And it's not the only record: among the passengers there is the youngest American woman and the first person with a prosthetic to go to space.

The "Inspiration4" mission was organized by US billionaire Jared Isaacman, 38, founder of "Shift4 Payments", a system that processes credit card transaction payments. The aim is to raise 200 million dollars to donate to the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. The entrepreneur has selected three other passengers to travel with him: Hayley Arceneaux, 29, a female doctor in a Memphis hospital; Sian Proctor, a geology teacher at an Arizona college and Chris Sembroski, 42, USAF veteran.

SpaceX was founded in 2002 with the aim of developing new technologies and reducing space travel costs. Among the major successes of the company there are the development of the Falcon rocket series and the Dragon capsules, as well as the first private spacecraft docking to the International Space Station (ISS). The first launch of a private space vehicle into orbit dates back to 2010.

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AVIONEWS - World Aeronautical Press Agency
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