Houston, we have a postcard!
SpaceX on Thursday shared this image of the breathtaking view that the four civilian passengers aboard the Crew Dragon capsule will get to enjoy over the next three days as they orbit around the Earth.
The 14-second clip from the cupola of the capsule shows a sweeping view of the planet.
Dubbed Inspiration4, the mission launched just after 8 p.m. Wednesday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. During their live-streamed ascent, some of the crew gave a thumbs-up and pumped their fists in the air in celebration of the successful liftoff.
The four private citizens — two men and two women — will spend three days circling the globe at an altitude of 335 miles — about 75 miles higher than the International Space Station and on a level with the Hubble Space Telescope.
The amateur astronauts — Jared Isaacman, Hayley Arceneaux, Chris Sembroski and Dr. Sian Proctor — have been training for months since the flight crew was announced in March.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX capsule is much higher and will spend substantially more time in space than that of its rivals, Jeff Bezos-owned Blue Origin or Sir Richard Branson-owned Virgin Galactic.