The SpaceX Crew Dragon was lifted into Low Earth Orbit today by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and photographer Camden Thrasher was on hand to document the launch and the atmosphere around it for APEX.
It’s undoubtably a triumphant moment for the United States as an American-made rocket lifted American astronauts from Florida’s Atlantic coast for the first time in almost a decade. Still, in the shadow of the SpaceX rocket is an America in turmoil; rocked by protests, in the midst of a pandemic, facing a massive economic upheaval. That people ventured out to watch the festivities at all can be seen, from one perspective, as a citizenry anxious for anything to celebrate.