CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The first astronauts launched by SpaceX have captured the flag left behind at the International Space Station nearly a decade ago by the last crew to launch from the U.S.
NASA astronaut Doug Hurley showed off the flag Monday, a day after arriving at the orbiting outpost.
The flag flew on the first space shuttle flight in 1981 and the last one in 2011. Hurley was on that final shuttle mission.
The flag was an added incentive for SpaceX and Boeing, competing to be the first private company to launch astronauts into orbit from the U.S. Boeing's first astronaut flight isn’t expected until next year.