A video shows a stand-in for the Crew Dragon capsule exiting an airplane and floating gently to the ground using just three parachutes, ensuring that the capsule will be able to land safely even if one of the parachutes fails.
SpaceX team has completed 13 successful tests in a row of upgraded Mark 3 parachutes for Crew Dragon. Most recent test demonstrated the parachute system’s ability to land the spacecraft safely in the unlikely event that one of the four main parachutes fails. pic.twitter.com/VJzDeS8UAG
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) November 3, 2019
"SpaceX team has completed 13 successful tests in a row of upgraded Mark 3 parachutes for Crew Dragon," SpaceX tweeted. "Most recent test demonstrated the parachute system's ability to land the spacecraft safely in the unlikely event that one of the four main parachutes fails."
An uncrewed Crew Dragon spaceship successfully docked with the International Space Station early in 2019, however, it is still not ready to launch people into space. NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine and SpaceX founder Elon Musk appeared together at SpaceX headquarters in early October to share the most recent developments of Crew Dragon project. They both emphasized the importance of passing all safety tests before launching spaceships with humans on board.
Bridenstine and Musk said they are hopeful the first crewed mission will launch in the first half of 2020, delivering NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.
