A test pilot from Cedar Falls, Iowa, Chari accumulated more than 2,500 hours in fighter jets, including combat missions in Iraq. Raja Chari, 44, the first space rookie in decades to lead a mission to orbit for NASA. Encouraged, he left his research job at a medical company and joined the space agency as an engineer, and made the astronaut cut in 2015. The 51-year-old was a finalist when he first applied to be an astronaut with the European Space Agency. Mauer is one of three newbies on the crew. One of the four chutes opened more than a minute late, a problem seen in testing and well within safety limits, SpaceX officials said Tuesday. A balky parachute during Monday's descent had SpaceX engineers poring over the data, before giving the go-ahead for Wednesday's launch. The Dragon capsule's toilet leaked during their three days in orbit in September, necessitating a quick redesign of the flushing system in the newest capsule, named Endurance by its crew. The crew launch marked SpaceX's fourth for NASA in 1 1/2 years and the company's fifth passenger flight overall - a charter flight for four that skipped the space station. "But I think in a very few years, we will see an exponential rise of that one because now we're entering the era of commercial spaceflight," he said after arriving at NASA's Kennedy Space Center two weeks ago. That averages out to 10 people per year since Yuri Gagarin's pioneering flight in 1961, Maurer noted. This year's surge in space tourists helped push the tally over the 600 mark. and Russian astronauts who have spent a year or more in orbit. The list of 600 travelers ranges from those who have barely scratched space - like actor William Shatner last month - to U.S. Forecasters promised the weather would improve and it did. Wednesday's night it was drizzling when the four astronauts said goodbye to their families, with umbrellas held over them. Bad weather also contributed to their flight delays. Officials won't say whether it was an illness or injury, but noted it wasn't COVID-19. The crew member is fully recovered, according to NASA.
One of the astronauts - NASA isn't saying which one - was sidelined last week by an undisclosed medical issue. He and his three NASA crewmates should arrive at the space station in under 24 hours, well over a week late. 600 position, according to NASA, based on his mission assignment.
Germany's Matthias Maurer claimed the No. Space Astronaut launches are returning to the U.S.
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