Four astronauts are in orbit and on their way to the International Space Station.
Their launch Sunday night by SpaceX kicks off regular crew flights from the U.S.
The Falcon rocket thundered into the night from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The Dragon capsule carrying three Americans and one Japanese is due to reach the orbiting outpost late Monday and will remain there until spring.
The astronauts named their capsule Resilience in light of the coronavirus pandemic and other hardships of 2020.
SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk was sidelined by the virus himself.
He says he “most likely” has a moderate case of COVID-19.
