SpaceX launched four astronauts toward orbit Friday using a recycled rocket and capsule, the third crew flight in less than a year for Elon Musk s rapidly expanding company. The astronauts from the US, Japan and France should reach the International Space Station early Saturday morning, following a 23-hour ride in the same Dragon capsule used by SpaceX s debut crew last May. They ll spend six months at the orbiting lab. It was the first time SpaceX reused a capsule and rocket to launch astronauts for NASA, after years of proving the capability on station supply runs. The rocket was used last November on the company s second astronaut flight.
The third high-altitude test of a SpaceX Starship prototype is scheduled for Wednesday. You can watch the launch live right here. Wednesday’s launch of SN10 should happen at approximately 5:30 p.m. ET.