Like the launch itself, the Crew Dragon landing was highly automated compared to many previous human-piloted missions. Behnken and Hurley still accomplished a lot, though, including performing and contributing to numerous experiments while they were aboard the International Space Station.

It’s an important occasion beyond the firsts involved. This is the last Crew Dragon test flight. Once SpaceX receives NASA certification, future flights will be regular missions carrying astronauts to the ISS. For NASA, meanwhile, it’s a major step forward for a Commercial Crew Program that could allow for more flights and lower costs.

This also represents a coup for SpaceX. While Boeing is still planning to bring its Starliner capsule into service, SpaceX is clearly ahead at the moment. That could lead to more opportunities with NASA, not to mention civilian flights as space commerce grows.

It also bodes well for the company’s greater ambitions. SpaceX is eyeing flights using Starship for journeys to places as distant as Mars, and Crew Dragon’s success suggests that the firm is on the right track.

Good splashdown of Dragon confirmed! Welcome back to Earth, @AstroBehnken and @Astro_Doug! pic.twitter.com/0vAS3CcK9P

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) August 2, 2020

NASA’s private spaceflight plans extend well beyond launching people into orbit. The agency is forming a plan to fly astronauts, investigators and other staff aboard suborbital spacecraft. Once a Suborbital Crew office inside the Commercial Crew Program has qualified a suborbital system as safe to use, NASA will buy seats aboard suborbital flights for various missions.

The administration is exploring these flights for the same reasons it has embraced commercial spaceflight in the first place: this is theoretically “more accessible, affordable, and available” than conventional government operations. At the least, it would save NASA from building the vehicles themselves.

Tomorrow’s test will demonstrate Crew Dragon’s ability to separate from Falcon 9 and carry astronauts to safety in the unlikely event of an emergency on ascent pic.twitter.com/Cji4S5JDHl

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) January 17, 2020

Last March, Crew Dragon successfully flew to the ISS and back, and if all goes well, a crewed flight could occur later this year. SpaceX is competing with Boeing’s Starliner in the NASA Commercial Crew program, so every test flight counts.

Come back here just before 8 AM ET on January 18th, and if the weather holds then you should see the Crew Dragon separate from its Falcon 9, then eventually land in the Atlantic Ocean. Even if you wake up a little late, keep an eye out — according to SpaceX, weather data suggests their best opportunity may be toward the end of the four-hour launch window.

Dragon Spacecraft supersonic abort test coming up either tomorrow or Sunday, depending on weather @NASA @SpaceX

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 17, 2020

Last year around this time we talked about all of the delays going into the new space race between SpaceX and Boeing, who are competing to build a new spaceflight system that NASA can use to take astronauts to the ISS. Since then, SpaceX successfully sent its Crew Dragon on an uncrewed test flight in March, and this morning Boeing will attempt to do the same with its CST-100 Starliner vehicle.

The two companies were chosen as candidates to build NASA’s “space taxi” in the Commercial Crew Program back in 2012, with the chance to secure billions in funding. Despite a number of delays, today appears to be the day we’ll see the CST-100 in action on a mission to perform a number of test maneuvers and show its ability to dock with the ISS. Like SpaceX’s flight, this mission is uncrewed, however the anthropometric test device “Rosie” will be along for the ride to collect data.

An “anomaly” that occurred during another static fire test in April caused an uncrewed capsule to explode. Earlier this month, SpaceX suggested the problem was due to a leak somewhere between the launch abort and orbital maneuvering systems. It has redesigned that part of the capsule.

The capsule will eventually transport as many as seven astronauts to the International Space Station at a time. An empty Crew Dragon docked with the ISS and successfully returned to Earth during a test in March.

If all goes well during the static fire, SpaceX should then move on to its next test: an “in-flight abort” centered on the SuperDraco safety system. SpaceX would attach an empty Crew Dragon to a rocket and, soon after liftoff, activate the system. It also plans to run at least 10 tests of the Crew Dragon parachute system. A crewed test, Demo-2, could take place early next year.

Meanwhile, Boeing is set to test its own Starliner capsule with an uncrewed flight to the ISS in December. Boeing and SpaceX have contracts with NASA for human spaceflight systems under the Commerical Crew program. Both have struggled with issues with their capsules that have caused delays to crewed launches.

Just before Elon Musk took a victory lap to show off SpaceX’s Starship in Texas, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine congratulated him while mentioning that his organization “expects to see the same enthusiasm focused on the investments of the American taxpayer.” He was referring to the long-delayed Commercial Crew program that SpaceX is participating in with its Crew Dragon.

Musk responded by bringing up NASA’s own oft-delayed project, the SLS, when asked about the comment. Bridenstine is scheduled to visit SpaceX HQ in Hawthorne, CA for a tour to check on the company’s progress, followed by a media availability session. He will be there alongside Musk, as well as the two astronauts scheduled to take flight on Crew Dragon’s Demo-2 flight test to the ISS, Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley.

As SpaceX continues its progress toward a Demo-2 launch of its Crew Dragon spacecraft with NASA astronauts aboard the company put together this reel of parachute tests. According to the tag, “SpaceX is returning human spaceflight capabilities to the United States with one of the safest, most advanced systems ever built.”

I didn’t spot a clip from the failed test in April, but that’s part of the reason why SpaceX is doing repeated tests from various heights and setups like the one it failed where one of the parachutes was intentionally disabled. It’s all to make sure that the system works when it’s called upon to provide a safe ocean landing for actual people. Boeing already announced the competing Starliner project has completed a qualification test for its parachute system, although both programs have faced technical issues, like the explosive incident SpaceX recently traced to an oxidizer leak.

The company had been gearing up for a mission abort test that would have fired all eight of Crew Dragon’s SuperDraco engines in mid-launch, showing that the capsule could get away from its host rocket in an emergency. That test was supposed to take place in June, but it’s not certain this will happen on schedule in light of the incident. A crewed launch was supposed to take place as soon as July, but it seems likely the timeline will change for that as well.

NASA isn’t deterred by the mishap. Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in a statement that anomalies like this are “why we test,” and that the space agency would “learn, make the necessary adjustments” and push forward with its Commercial Crew Program. Still, this clearly isn’t what NASA wanted to hear months before it was poised to make history — it’s another reminder that the road to private human spaceflight has been perilous.

Just about a week after launching on its inaugural voyage, the SpaceX Crew Dragon has one more step to complete: returning to Earth. First, the uncrewed spacecraft will undock from the International Docking Adapter on the ISS that it has called home for the last few days, which is scheduled to occur at about 2:31 AM ET. Once all the hooks are released, as NASASpaceflight.com explains, it will complete a separation burn and prepare to deorbit.

Part two is the actual sea landing, with splashdown in the Atlantic scheduled to occur around 8:45 AM ET, although the timing could change based on wind and other variables. NASA TV will cover things live on its streaming channel (embedded below) starting at 2 AM, and then coming back on the air at 7:30 AM ET.