Astronauts live in fear on their way to the International Space Station

the mission Crew 2It consists of two astronauts from the US Space Agency (NASA), One of the European agencies (Which – which) And another from the Japanese (Jaxa), He successfully completed his journey to International Space Station (ISS) On board prof Dragon capsule The company SpaceX.

“We are very happy to be here and ready to go to work,” he said. Megan MacArthurOne of the two NASA astronauts, when communicating with the Acting President of the US Agency, Steve GoerchekAs soon as they enter the station.

The capsule, which was placed into space by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that took off at 9.49 GMT Friday from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, docked at 09:08 GMT at the Harmony Module of the space station. It flies 425 kilometers over the Indian Ocean.

Photo: NASA via AP

Once they managed to reach the interior of the International Space Station, Megan MacArthur, Shane Kembra (NASA), Japanese Akihiko Hoshid (JAXA) and Frenchman Thomas Pesquet (ESA) took a picture with the other seven astronauts who were waiting for them at the station.

The four members of the Crew-2 mission made history by first flying in a previously used missile and capsule.

Fear during the journey into space

The flight went smoothly, except for a moment of panic at 17:43 GMT on Friday when a piece of space debris passed near the capsule while the astronauts were getting ready for bed.

Sarah Giles of SpaceX dispatched astronauts by radio about 20 minutes before “pairing” and that they would immediately “put on their suits and secure their seats” in the event of a potential collision.

The Frenchman answered Pesquet, confirming that he had received the instructions and proceeded to comply with them, and soon after Giles called again to tell them that the trash fragment would not pass as much as they had initially feared.

Photo: NASA via AP

In a new conversation on the radio minutes later, he warned them that the danger had passed, according to the recordings provided to media specializing in spatial information.

It is the first time in more than 20 years that astronauts from the US, European and Japanese space agencies have traveled together.

It is also the first time that two Dragon capsules have been docked simultaneously to the International Space Station.

Photo: AFP PHOTO / NASA

The International Space Station is a project valued at more than $ 150 billion, and consists of 15 permanent units.

This laboratory, orbiting the Earth at a distance of 400 kilometers and at a speed of more than 27,000 kilometers per hour, rotates international astronauts to conduct studies and contribute to medical and other research.

In 2020, thanks to million-dollar contracts with SpaceX and Boeing, NASA was able to resume astronaut flights to the International Space Station from US soil, which have been paused since 2011, when the space shuttle program ended after sending its last flight, Atlantis.

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