SpaceX launches first Turkish astronaut into space as part of trailblazing mission

A SpaceX rocket has taken off for the International Space Station on a groundbreaking mission that takes space travel to new heights.

Four Europeans are on board the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, among them is the first astronaut from Turkey. The trailblazing mission, which was originally slated for Wednesday but was delayed due to last-minute checks, is operated entirely by the private sector.

The mission marks the latest attempt from the private sector — in collaboration with NASA — to make traveling into Earth’s orbit a commercially viable enterprise.

If successful, the mission advances a years-long effort by the US to expand commercial activity in space as NASA looks to wind down the International Space Station.

This would open the door to an exciting new industry of private space stations as the space agency devotes its resources to exploring the solar system, such as to the moon and Mars.

Liftoff of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was slated for Wednesday, but the company was forced to delay the mission as it worked to complete final checks before launch.

Benji Reed, Space X’s senior director of human spaceflight programs, told reporters during a news briefing Tuesday that teams had to work through the weekend to address issues with parachutes on the Crew Dragon capsule, which sits atop the Falcon 9 during launch.

The rocket was launched on Thursday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After reaching space, the Crew Dragon capsule will break away from the Falcon 9 rocket and begin navigating on its own, making a slow approach to the space station. The Crew Dragon is expected to dock early Saturday morning.

The four-person crew on board Axiom-3, as this mission is called, includes Alper Gezeravcı — pronounced “Geh-zeh-rahv-juh” — a fighter pilot with the Turkish air force who has broke new ground by being the first citizen of Turkey to reach low-Earth orbit.

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