Live coverage: Soyuz crew lands in Kazakhstan

Two veteran NASA astronauts rocketed away from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday to begin a test flight of a new commercial spaceship designed, built and owned by SpaceX.

An all-veteran crew of four astronauts jetted into NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Friday for the final few days of rehearsals, briefings, and relaxation before blasting off Thursday bound for a six-month stint on the International Space Station.

Johann-Dietrich Woerner, head of the German Aerospace Center, will take over as director general of the European Space Agency on July 1. Woerner will take the helm from Jean-Jacques Dordain, who has held the top post at ESA since 2003.