The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Dragon spacecraft atop is on the pad at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 2, 2023. Photo credit: NASA
Today’s launch marks SpaceX’s 38th launch this year, 4th Dragon flight in 2023, and 237th mission overall
This is the fifth flight of this Falcon 9 rocket
This is the fourth flight for this Dragon spacecraft
Dragon made its debut to the International Space Station in 2012 as the first private spacecraft to visit the station – since then, it’s made 37 trips and transported 280K pounds of cargo back and forth to and from the orbiting laboratory
Teams plan to recover the Falcon 9’s first stage following its return to Earth – if successful, this will be the 198th recovery of an orbital-class rocket
SpaceX has reflown the first stage of their rockets 170 times between the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles
At the time of launch, the International Space Station will be 260 miles over the north Atlantic, south of St. John’s, Newfoundland
