The Seattle Times · May 6, 2015
No humans, just dummy, aboard SpaceX capsule for escape test
FILE – In this May 29, 2014, file photo, the SpaceX Dragon V2 spaceship is unveiled at its headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif. SpaceX is scheduled to conduct the first major...CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX is about to conduct the first major test of its brand new, super-streamlined launch escape system for astronauts.
No humans are on board the mock-up capsule for Wednesday’s 90-second flight from Cape Canaveral, Florida, just a dummy. The Dragon capsule will be fired from a test stand — not a rocket — and should soar close to a mile high before parachuting into the Atlantic about a mile offshore. Eight rocket engines on the capsule will provide the thrust.
