- NASA and SpaceX launched astronauts into space from American soil for the first time in almost 10 years today.
- Since the end of the space shuttle program in 2011, NASA has relied on the Russian space program's shuttles to get American astronauts up to the International Space Station — a necessity for furthering research and development when it comes to long-term space travel.
- But, thanks to the commercial crew program, that's about to change.
- Here's why it took so long to send a crewed rocket back to space from the US.
Why NASA waited nearly a decade to send astronauts into space from the US
Abby Tang,Alexandra Appolonia
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