SpaceX launches 4 astronauts for NASA after private flight

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX has launched four astronauts to the International Space Station for NASA, less than two days after completing a flight chartered by millionaires. The Falcon rocket blasted off before dawn Wednesday (April 27, 2022) from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. The crew includes the first Black woman making a long-term spaceflight, NASA’s Jessica Watkins. Also on board: the European Space Agency’s lone female astronaut, Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy. It’s the first time NASA has sent up a crew comprised equally of men and women. They should reach the space station Wednesday night.