SpaceX Dragon capsule returns to Earth in fireball in most dramatic moment of pioneering journey
Successful splashdown changed how Nasa sends astronauts into space
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Your support makes all the difference.SpaceX’s brand new crew capsule has splashed down on Earth – and might have changed the future of space travel as it did.
It dropped into the Atlantic Ocean, right on time, bringing an end to a mission that went entirely successfully and paves the way for the capsule to carry astronauts to space.
The Dragon capsule pulled away from the orbiting lab early Friday, a test dummy named Ripley its lone occupant. It’s aiming for a morning splashdown in the Atlantic off Florida’s coast, the final hurdle of the six-day test flight. Saturday’s launch and Sunday’s docking were spot on.
NASA astronauts have been stuck riding Russian rockets since space shuttles retired eight years ago. NASA is counting on SpaceX and Boeing to start launching astronauts this year. SpaceX is aiming for summer.
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Here it comes! A Nasa airplane has spotted the capsule! It's streaking across the sky as it flies into the atmosphere.
This is the first time it's been seen from Earth since it set off from Cape Canaveral a few days ago.
SpaceX has connected to the capsule, about a minute earlier than it had expected.
The first parachutes should deploy in a couple of minutes. The capsule is now less than 30km from Earth.
The parachutes haven't yet opened but the capsule is slowing down intensely, just from hitting the atmosphere. It's now slower than the speed of sound.
The parachutes are out! (That's what this shows, even if it's not obvious.)
Just a few hundred metres left and the capsule is gliding down soft and safely.
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