NASA Awards SpaceX $440 Million Contract

(Newsroom America) -- Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) has won a $440 million contract with NASA to develop the successor to the Space Shuttle and transport American astronauts into space. “This is a decisive milestone in human spaceflight and sets an exciting course for the next phase of American space exploration,” said SpaceX CEO and Chief Designer Elon Musk.

“SpaceX, along with our partners at NASA, will continue to push the boundaries of space technology to develop the safest, most advanced crew vehicle ever flown.” SpaceX expects to undertake its first manned flight by 2015 – a timetable that capitalizes on the proven success of the company’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft combination.

While Dragon is initially being used to transport cargo to the International Space Station, both Dragon and Falcon 9 were designed from the beginning to carry crew. Under the Commercial Crew Integrated Capability (CCiCap) initiative’s base period, SpaceX will make the final modifications necessary to prepare Dragon to safely transport astronauts into space.

These include seats for seven astronauts, the most technically advanced launch escape system ever developed, and a breakthrough propulsive landing system for gentle ground touchdowns on legs.