SpaceX launch: NASA astronauts begin historic mission on private spaceship

The private rocket company SpaceX has sent two NASA astronauts into orbit.

It's the first time since the retirement of the shuttles nine years ago that an American crew has made the journey from US territory.

BBC News eDoug Hurley and Bob Behnken are not only trialling a new capsule system, they are also initiating a new business model for NASA.

The agency will no longer own the vehicles it uses but merely purchase the "taxi" service offered by SpaceX.

It's hoped companies other than tech billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX outfit will come in to expand the market.

The aerospace giant Boeing already has a contract with NASA to do so.

The new capability will end the reliance of NASA on the Russian space agency Roscosmos to get its astronauts into space.

Since 2011, they've been going up on Soyuz rockets and capsules.

It was a point picked up on by President Donald Trump, who came to Florida to watch the launch.

[Source: BBC]