The Sun Rises on a New Age

Falcon 9 Lifts Off on Historic Mission

Lifting off at  3:44:38 Am Eastern Time, the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying the first fully functional Dragon capsule ushered in the dawn of a new era in spaceflight.  Moments later, immediately after entering orbit, the spacecraft achieved a major milestone, successfully extending its solar panels and coming fully to life for the first time.  Although the immediate destination is Low Earth Orbit and the International Space Station, this is a spacecraft, and a launch system meant for further shores.  After 50 years, and more than a few false starts, the era of economically sustainable space exploration has finally begun.