White steam from the fuel billowed into the clear black night sky Sunday as the seconds ticked back to lift-off. For a moment, the screen filled with orange fire as the Falcon 9 rocket blasted off this planet. Once, it was easier to grasp the significance of each space launch. The world seemed to hold its collective breath as a rocket went up. The concept was mind-boggling and so new. We knew astronauts’ names, where they were from, and felt connected to their families. Then, launches became more common, and for a while, they seemed almost pedestrian. Almost.
Sunday evening’s perfect launch of NASA's SpaceX Crew-1 mission, a partnership between NASA and SpaceX, sent four astronauts to the International Space Station. This launch had to be rescheduled from Saturday to Sunday evening because of inclement weather in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Before the lift-off, former astronaut Mike Massimino (pictured below), who provided commentary for the three-hour Space Launch Live: Crew-1 Lift-Off on Discovery and Science Channel, spoke exclusively with MediaVillage.
“It's the first operational launch, the first time sending a crew there to stay for a while,” Massimino said, explaining the significance of this SpaceX launch. “The first time was just two people. Will this work? We didn’t know. Now, this is an expedition crew.”
Three NASA astronauts -- Michael Hopkins, Victor Glover and Shannon Walker -- and Japan Aerospace Exploration astronaut Soichi Noguchi are in the Dragon spacecraft. After 27 hours of space travel, they will dock at the International Space Station for six months. (Walker, Glover, Hopkins and Noguchi are pictured left to right at top.)
Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket is reusable, and the potential is for this to lead to commercial space travel. Ultimately, Musk and other billionaires working on the next steps of interplanetary travel envision rockets being used for frequent trips to the Moon and beyond.
This is also a huge deal for Discovery and Science Channel.
“The awe and wonder of science and the next frontier is such a perfect moment for our brand to do it this way,” said Scott Lewers, executive vice president of multiplatform programming, factual and head of content, Science Channel. “To bring this great coverage and exclusive coverage, to give our viewers a front-row seat to this epic launch -- no one covers it like we do at Discovery. It is three hours. In addition to learning and experiencing, it is seeing the awe and wonder of technology.”
Discovery and Science channels have the advantage of using cameras from different vantages from NASA, SpaceX and the network's cameras. “Our coverage continues until they reach low orbit,” Lewers explained. “It is another eight and a half hours for low orbit to the space station, and the whole docking procedure is on other platforms.”
Musk, who was supposed to be at the launch, tested positive for COVID-19. Though he reported no serious symptoms, he did not join his staff in Florida.
As daylight gave way to night, tests continued, weather patterns were monitored, and coverage included four astronauts speaking from their homes. Massimino, who served 18 years as a NASA astronaut, is noted for many accomplishments and will forever be remembered for sending the first Tweet from space. (Technically, he emailed the