The SpaceX capsule with four astronauts arrived today at the International Space Station (MSS), where the astronauts will stay until spring.
The capsule traveled for 21 hours from NASA's Kennedy Space Center to the station.
It carried one German and three American astronauts who reacted emotionally when they first saw the international station at a distance of 30 kilometers. "It's a pretty fantastic sight," said Raja Chari, commander of the Dragon capsule.
"It floats in the air and shines like a diamond. We are all quite excited," said German astronaut Matthias Mauer.
The entire flight of the Dragon capsule was automated, and Chari and pilot Tom Marshburn monitored the capsule's systems, ready to take over if necessary. They landed 423 kilometers above the eastern Caribbean.
At the space station they were met by three astronauts instead of seven as planned. SpaceX, in fact, returned four astronauts from the International Station on Monday after the launch of the capsule with the new team was repeatedly delayed.
One astronaut from the American space agency NASA and two Russian astronauts remained in the station.
The new crew will spend the next six months in the space station and during that period will host two groups of tourists. Russia will launch the first group in December and Spacex the second group in February this year.
Bonus video:
