SpaceX New Dragon



Dragon's tail



SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket attached to the cargo-only capsule called Dragon lifts off from the launch pad for the first pay cargo run to the ISS. This is a long awaited flight of a commercial private launch of a rocket into space. Once only a government could afford to spend the money to launch a craft into space, now private companies are stepping into that field.

The capsule will attach to the ISS in about three days and spend about three weeks at the station. During this time the 1000 pounds of cargo will be removed and about 2000 pounds of cargo packed into the ship. Unlike other cargo ships, the Dragon will splash down with the material. Other cargo ships burn up on re-entry. The Soyuz craft are too small to return the crew and cargo, so this is the first chance to return a load of experiments and supplies.