NASA and SpaceX picks October 23 for Crew-1 launch

NASA and SpaceX have selected a target date for Crew-1, the first operational crewed mission for SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft.

Crew-1 will carry astronauts Shannon Walker, Victor Glover, Mike Hopkins and Soichi Noguchi to the International Space Station, and will mark the first regular service mission of the Dragon spacecraft

The Dragon spacecraft was previously certified by Demo-2, a mission launched on May 30 with astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley on board. Hurley and Behnken completed that mission with a successful return to Earth earlier this month.

If all goes well, the Crew-1 mission will pave the way for the Crew-2 to take place next spring, bringing up four more astronauts to relieve the Crew-1.