Private Spacecraft Returns Safely From Orbit

By KENNETH CHANG
NYT

For the first time a commercial spacecraft was launched into orbit and returned safely to Earth.

The launch, a test of a commercially developed spacecraft designed to take cargo and eventually astronauts to the International Space Station, was successful from beginning to end on Wednesday.

The flight was the first demonstration flight in a program by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to use private companies to ferry cargo and supplies to the space station.

“It reinforces what the president laid out and what Congress endorsed as the future of space transportation,” said Lori Garver, NASA’s deputy administrator. “This does indeed validate the path we are on.”

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