SpaceX rocket takes off with four astronauts

 

A SpaceX rocket carrying three U.S. astronauts and a Japanese astronaut launched from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Sunday bound for the International Space Station (ISS).

The mission, which is the first crewed mission to use a SpaceX rocket, successfully began Sunday evening after being delayed from an initial planned launch on Saturday due to onshore winds, according to a NASA press release.

Sunday's launch was attended by Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen Pence, who wore masks and watched from a balcony. 

The SpaceX Crew Dragon craft is expected to dock with the ISS tomorrow evening. The three U.S. astronauts participating in the mission are Shannon Walker, Victor Glover, and Mike Hopkins; they are accompanied by Soichi Noguchi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.