SpaceX Launches 9th Crewed Mission To Space Station For NASA

SpaceX launched its 9th crewed mission with four astronauts aboard during a fiery launch from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday.

The launch briefly turned night into day as the Falcon 9 rocket streaked over the Atlantic Ocean. It took nine minutes for the capsule to reach 17,500 mph and escape the Earth’s gravity. Over the next 24 hours, the crew will chase the International Space Station with a scheduled docking at 1:17 a.m.

Nearly 80 spectators from the United Arab Emirates watched from the launch site as astronaut Sultan al-Neyadi — only the second Emirati to fly to space — blasted off on his six-month mission.

It is pertinent to mention that the previous launch attempt on Monday was scrubbed three minutes before liftoff after a ground filter that pumps ignition fluid into the rocket engines became clogged.