By The rocket maker SpaceX has a video of its out-of-this-world feat: In May, the private company launched its Dragon spacecraft, which became the first commercial vehicle to successfully attach to the International Space Station.
Previously only the United States, Russia, Japan and the European Space Agency had achieved such an undertaking.
So no surprise that there would be a video to commemorate the success. The highlight reel shows dramatic footage of employees cheering at liftoff, the tension of attaching the Dragon to the space station, and the return drop into the Pacific Ocean.
The video, set to a soaring soundtrack, has been getting attention, with over 35,000 online views so far. Comments on YouTube include "Keep up the great work Space X !" and " I can see the Space X movie! "
The California-based company does have astronomical ambitions: A company spokesperson confirmed to Yahoo News that SpaceX has signed a $1.6 billion contract with NASA for 12 cargo missions to the International Space Station. The first mission is expected to occur at the end of this year.
Be prepared for a sequel. The company's next big goal: Flying people into space. In the video, when astronauts at the space station open the Dragon's hatch, U.S. astronaut Don Pettit is heard saying, "I spent quite a bit of time poking around in here this morning, looking at the engineering and the layout, and I'm very pleased. Flying up in a human-rated Dragon is not going to be an issue."
SpaceX told Yahoo News that it expects to carry the first people to space in three years. The company met a major milestone when it completed an important design review of the crewed version of its Dragon spacecraft.