SpaceX Dragon Crewed Spaceflight May Launch On May 7

SpaceX is expected to launch its first crewed spaceflight – the SpaceX Dragon, on May 7th. The company’s CEO, Elon Musk had earlier indicated that a crewed spaceflight had been scheduled between April and June.

According to a new report, the company has set the date, but with a rider that the launch date is fluid. The mission would be rescheduled, if needed, depending on the variables, which are mostly software related.

The company is yet to declare how long the flight will be. The Dragon has already succeeded in initial tests. It had successfully docked with the International Space Station in March 2019. In January this year, the company successfully launched the in-flight launch escape test. The maneuver is an escape mechanism, which lets the capsule break away from the Falcon 9 launch rocket and splashdown in the Atlantic Ocean in case something goes wrong with the launch.

It has also conducted a round of engine test, without any flaws.

In December 2019, Musk posted a two-minute video showing a simulation of how the Falcon 9/Dragon.

SpaceX is one of the two companies which have been awarded a contract by NASA. It is not only working on crewed spaceflight but also on launching satellites. The other company, Boeing has its own plan of crewed spaceflight – a CST-100 Starliner will launch astronauts in space using Atlas V rockets.

Crewed spaceflight is an important element in achieving Musk’s dream of humans becoming a multi-planet species. The Dragon is expected to take astronauts from earth to the International Space Station, but the plan post that is not known.

If everything goes according to plan, the company is expected to work on commercializing spaceflights – it is expected to take not just astronauts on the behalf of nations, but even work towards a space tourism model on the lines of Richard Branson’s Virgin Atlantic.