"Crew Dragon," the new space capsule built by private firm SpaceX, has splashed down successfully in the Atlantic Ocean. The capsule is designed to transport astronauts to the ISS.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/NASA
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The Crew Dragon space capsule on Friday successfully concluded a six-day test mission to the International Space Station, splashing down near Cape Canaveral in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of the US state of Florida at 1345 UTC (8:45 a.m. Eastern time). "Good splashdown of Dragon confirmed!" the SpaceX team announced.
Parachutes were deployed to slow the capsule's descent into the sea.
The '"Demo-1" was the first private mission to the ISS, and the first time a space vessel capable of carrying humans had been launched from US soil in eight years.
The splashdown had been seen as the most difficult part of the trip, with the capsule passing quickly through Earth's atmosphere engulfed in flames before having its descent slowed by parachutes.
NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine hailed the capsule's return to Earth, saying it "marked another milestone in a new era of human spaceflight."
The head of Roskosmos, Russia's space agency, also congratulated his "dear colleagues," Bridenstine and SpaceX founder Elon Musk.
Former US President Barack Obama praised "the successful return" of the capsule on Twitter, adding that his administration was the first to launch the commercialization of astronaut transportation to space.
Test dummy Ripley's trip back to Earth went without a hitchImage: picture-alliance/Newscom/UPI Photo/SpaceX
Crewed mission to come
The capsule, which reached the ISS on Sunday, undocked from the station at 0732 UTC Friday while over Sudan.
The flight, whose only passenger was a test dummy called Ripley, was a test ahead of a mission with a crew on board.
Scheduled for July, SpaceX mission Demo-2 plans to carry the company's first two NASA astronauts.
The SpaceX project was undertaken together with the US aerospace organization NASA, which currently relies on the Russian space program and its Soyuz spacecraft to shuttle astronauts to the ISS research facility.
The company was founded in 2002 by South African entrepreneur Elon Musk with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and working toward colonizing Mars.
From colonies on Mars to Hyperloop — Elon Musk's multifarious projects
Billionaire investor and tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has always done things his own way, from designing space rockets to manufacturing electric cars. Here's a look at some of his grand futuristic projects.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/J. Lampen
A serial entrepreneur
Tech visionary Musk intends to revolutionize transportation, both on earth and in space, and the way humans lead their lives. Over the past two decades, the South African-born American entrepreneur has emerged as one of Silicon Valley's most recognized faces worldwide. Musk was cofounder of Paypal, which was acquired by eBay for $1.4 billion (€1.2 billion) in 2002.
Image: picture allianc/dpa/A. Sokolow
Eying space
In 2002, Musk founded SpaceX, an aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company currently valued at over $20 billion. He wants to make space travel cheaper and, eventually, enable human life on Mars, thus giving human kind a chance at becoming multi-planetary species.
Image: Reuters/T. Baur
A mission to Mars
SpaceX's Falcon and Dragon rocket programs both already deliver payloads into Earth's orbit. The company has said it wants to launch its Mars-bound cargo flight in 2022, followed by the first Mars flight with passengers in 2024.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Press Association Images/Spacex
Transforming transportation
After founding SpaceX, Musk set up Tesla in 2003 to come up with electric autonomous vehicles and renewable energy solutions. But production bottlenecks have plagued the company, with much of its future banked on the Model 3, its first mid-price, mass-market vehicle.
Image: Reuters/Tesla
Really big Teslas are coming
After the foray into electric cars, Musk last year opened a new chapter in his book of visions as he unveiled the prototype of a futuristic all-electric heavy truck. The vehicle — dubbed the Tesla Semi — is set to go into production in 2019. It would boast 500 miles of range, a battery and motors that will last 1 million miles and cheaper total operating costs than diesel models, Musk claimed.
Image: Reuters/A. Sage
Roofs made of solar tiles
Besides running SpaceX and Tesla, Musk has also invested in the solar energy company SolarCity to turn his vision of a solar-powered future into a reality. Musk said houses equipped with Tesla's Solar Roof would feed energy to Powerwall, a sleek storage unit designed to act as an electricity fill-up station for both the house and a Tesla electric car.
Image: picture-alliance/Newscom/Tesla/UPI
Dreaming an electric future
In 2015, Musk unveiled Powerwall, a home battery unit with a selling price of $3,500 for 10kWh and $3,000 for 7kWh. The Powerwall can be controlled via one's phone, from anywhere. But slow production rates have proved to be a problem.
Image: Reuters/P. T. Fallon
Hyperloop
Hyperloop came into global prominence after it was proposed by Musk in 2013. It is viewed as a next-generation transportation system — a "fifth mode" of transport (after planes, trains, cars and boats). It uses magnetically-levitated pods and sealed partial vacuum transit tubes to move people and freight at supersonic speeds estimated to reach over 700 miles per hour (1,127 kilometers per hour).
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/SpaceX
Merging brain with AI
In 2016, Musk co-founded Neuralink, a neurotechnology startup that is reportedly trying to create brain-computer interfaces by integrating the human brain with artificial intelligence (AI). The project is currently at an early stage of development.
