CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.--What could be the first rocket to launch astronauts from Cape Canaveral in eight years arrived on the Space Coast Wednesday.
The Atlas 5 was unloaded from a ship at Port Canaveral.
The 10-story tall first stage of the Atlas 5 was manufactured in Alabama and then sent by ship south.
The rocket will carry the Boeing-built Starliner spaceship, with astronauts Chris Ferguson, Nicole Mann and Mike Fincke on board.
The launch of the Starliner with a crew could come as early as November.
SpaceX is also hoping to be the first to launch an astronaut crew. The company is trying to recover from an accident with their crew capsule, but could also be ready before the end of the year.
The @ulalaunch Atlas V rocket🚀 that will launch @BoeingSpace's CST-100 Starliner spacecraft on its Crew Flight Test to the @Space_Station was transported to the Atlas Spaceflight Operations Center earlier today: https://t.co/Yrfjqu43vz pic.twitter.com/uAWVfBEjQX
— NASA Commercial Crew (@Commercial_Crew) June 5, 2019