SpaceX Revs Its Engines as It Gets Closer to Crewed Flight

Last Thursday, a shiny new SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sat perched atop NASA's historic Pad 39A, at Florida's Kennedy Space Center, waiting to briefly fire its engines. The exercise was part of a routine pre-launch test. What wasn't routine was the presence of a Crew Dragon capsule atop the slick black-and-white Falcon. The domed capsule, which can accommodate up to seven passengers, represents the next big step in SpaceX's evolution and in NASA's dependency on a commercial space industry. The test simulated all of the events of an actual launch, though with the rocket secured to the pad.