SpaceX's Fram2 launch sends civilian crew into first flight around Earth's poles

A wealthy Chinese-born bitcoin entrepreneur, a Norwegian cinematographer, a German robotics expert and an Australian adventurer blasted off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket Monday, kicking off the first crewed flight over the North and South poles.

Using a first stage booster making its sixth fight — another first for a Crew Dragon — liftoff from historic pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center came on time at 9:46 p.m. EDT.

Lighting up the night sky, the Falcon 9 initially climbed straight up and then arced over onto a due south trajectory along Florida's east coast before soaring out over the Gulf on a course carrying it above Cuba and Panama toward a polar orbit.