"This is the only way, after 40 years of it being a fundamental goal of NASA, that we have achieved launching and returning humans to space for less, and in a more routine way, than we've ever been able to do it. And even before that, with the Space Shuttle, Garver explained that the goal of NASA's human spaceflight efforts "was to lower the cost of humans getting to space" - a goal the Space Shuttle fell short, with analysts estimating that prior spacecraft cost about $1.75 billion per launch when adjusted for inflation. has paid Russia upwards of $80 million per seat to fly NASA astronauts to the International Space Station. Garver was a catalyst for the early days of Commercial Crew, helping the program receive its first funding under President Barack Obama's administration.Įver since the Space Shuttle retired nearly a decade ago, the U.S. "The money that NASA put into this is a fraction of what they put into trying to get vehicles to do this in the past, so they were able to leverage their money really effectively with the private sector lending innovation," former NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver told CNBC. Commercial Crew is a competitive program, as NASA also awarded Boeing with $4.8 billion in contracts to develop its Starliner spacecraft - but that competing capsule remains in development due to an uncrewed flight test that experienced significant challenges nearly a year ago.Ĭrew-1 represents the first of those six missions for SpaceX, with NASA now benefiting from the investment it made in the company's spacecraft development. SpaceX developed its Crew Dragon spacecraft and fine-tuned its Falcon 9 rocket under NASA's Commercial Crew program, which provided the company with $3.1 billion to develop the system and launch six operational missions. NASA will broadcast steady live coverage of the mission, from four hours before launch until the spacecraft docks with the International Space Station the next day. NASA's coronavirus policy is that anyone who tests positive is required to quarantine away from the agency's facilities and self-isolate. Musk, who was expected to be at Kennedy Space Center for the launch, notably shared on Saturday that he "most likely" has a "moderate case" of Covid-19, while also continuing to question the accuracy of the tests. If NASA and SpaceX decide to postpone the launch, the next available launch opportunity would be Wednesday at 6:16 p.m. The Air Force's 45th Space Wing forecast that the launch has a 50% probability of launching on Sunday given current weather concerns, which include rain and thick clouds. NASA and SpaceX on Sunday continued to move forward with the launch as planned, with liftoff set for 7:27 p.m.
One of the key factors for launching on Sunday remains the temperamental Florida weather.
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