ENG: The launch was a success! Bob and Doug are currently docked to the I.S.S. !

Falcon 9 taking off from Launch Pad 39-A, aboard were astronauts Bob and Doug

Hello everyone, David here, and... HELL YES! It launched! Bob and Doug are currently performing maneuvers around the I.S.S to test the performance of the vehicle and its autonomous docking system.

It was a hell of a launch day. Florida woke up looking up to a clear blue sky, however, as T-0 came closer and closer, clouds started closing in on the launchpad. Things weren’t looking good, but about 40 minutes before launch, the sky (somewhat) cleared and Falcon 9 was go-for-launch!

The launch was a complete success, the rocket pitched down ranged gracefully as the people down on Earth cheered at the beautiful sight of a new era in human space exploration was born. Americans from American soil aboard an American spacecraft, the first time since 2011… a truly historic moment right before our eyes!

To finish off, about the same time SECO took place (Second Engine Cut Off), the first stage booster fired one of its nine Merlin Engines to slow down for a soft touchdown on the “Of Course I Still Love You” remote water drone… and it did! This was just the cherry on the delicious cake that Launch America was. Congratulations to SpaceX, NASA, and the crew that made it all possible, making dreams come true during such a hard time!

First stage booster successfuly landed on the "Of Course I Still Love You" drone

Later on, Bob and Doug recorded a little tour of the Crew Dragon capsule as they floated around in 0g with the dinosaur they brought up for their children (who love dinos), and following tradition, they had the pleasure to name the spacecraft, introducing their choice to the whole world down below: Crew Capsule Endeavor! They said they chose so for two reasons – what NASA and SpaceX went through for that flight was a true endeavor, and their love for the now-retired Space Shuttle Endeavor, in which both astronauts had previously flown.

Bob and Doug recording a tour of the Crew Capsule Endeavor spacecraft

As I mentioned, right now (10:00 a.m EDT), Bob and Doug are minutes away from docking with the International Space Station, while testing both the autonomous docking system and manual controls of the spacecraft. By the way, a little simulator is available right here, in which you can try to dock with the I.S.S. yourself with what allegedly is the interface used by them, and let me tell you, it mustn’t be easy in real life. They need to be really gentle on the controls, as they don’t want to hit the docking port too hard or push the Station or something. It is also an extremely precise thing, as you must be perfectly aligned with your target. Give it a try, it’s fun!

I think this is about it for today’s quick post. My next big one is underway, and it’s going to be about g-forces, so we’ll talk about physics, jets and other cool things! Godspeed Bob and Doug, and thank you for reading, I’ll see you all later! Peace!

edit: They are docked! Currently being welcome by members aboard the International Space Station and mission control down at Houston. I'm sure it was a hell of a journey, so good job Bob and Doug, and good job for the NASA and SpaceX teams!

Crew Capsule Endeavor docked to the I.S.S., aboard are astronauts Bob and Doug