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First space pilot Victor Glover took a spin in the history books after becoming the first black crew member to set up a camp on the International Space Station (ISS) for long-term stays.
The 44-year-old NASA astronaut began a six-month period in the space laboratory orbiting 250 miles above the Earth.
Mr. Glover traveled in a spaceX-built rocket and capsule system of billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, as part of the aerospace company’s first manned operational flight in low earth orbit.
He flew into space on November 15 alongside Michael Hopkins and Shannon Walker of NASA and Japanese Soichi Noguchi.
Mr. Glover is currently serving as a pilot and second-in-command on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, called Resilience.
He will also take on the role of flight engineer on the space station as part of the Expedition 64 crew, which also includes Kate Rubins of NASA and Sergey Ryzhikov and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov of Russia.
So far, only 14 black Americans have been in space out of a total of more than 300 NASA astronauts, according to the New York Times.
Mr Glover is not the first black astronaut to spend time on the space station, but those who preceded him have only made short stays there.
Speaking to reporters after arriving at the space station, he described being in orbit as “surreal,” adding, “I’ve seen tons of images.
“But the first time I looked at the Earth out of the window, it’s hard to describe.
“There are no words … it was an incredible, unrepeatable feeling.”
“There are no words to describe it. It was an amazing, once in a lifetime feeling. “Listen to listen @AstroVicGloverThe reaction to his first space race. pic.twitter.com/QGLZaWpc6s
– NASA (@NASA) November 19, 2020
Mr. Glover also said he is adjusting to the feeling of weightlessness.
He joked: “My brain is constantly trying to figure out where it is.
“I don’t know if it’s because I’m a new kid, they made me sleep on the ceiling.
“So every time I pop my head out, the whole space station is upside down.
“So I stay upside down as much as possible.”
Mr. Glover received his BA in general engineering from California Polytechnic State University in 1999.
Subsequently, he earned three masters in flight test engineering, systems engineering, and military art and operational science.
Mr. Glover began his career in the United States Navy as a test pilot before becoming commander.
He was selected as an astronaut in 2013 while serving as a legislative member in the United States Senate.
For NASA, SpaceX’s first manned operational flight marks the beginning of the use of private firms as a “taxi service” to fly its crew to and from the space station.
Meanwhile, fellow astronaut Jeanette Epps, who is expected to reach the space station next year aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule, could become the first black woman to join an ISS crew.
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