BLAST OFF

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Will Launch a Manned Mission to the ISS in May

The U.S. hasn’t launched a manned mission to the ISS since the last space shuttle mission in 2011.

Space is probably the best place to be right now. Elon Musk’s SpaceX will embark on its first manned voyage to the International Space Station in May, according to NASA. It will be the first crewed launch from the United States to the platform in nine years. The company will transport NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the space station, and the mission will mark the first time that a private company has carried NASA astronauts into space. The U.S. hasn’t launched a manned mission to the ISS since the last space shuttle mission (on the Atlantis) in 2011—only the Russians have been going back and forth to the ISS in the meantime. SpaceX has made the trip 15 times since 2012, but only to refuel the station.