Watch: Elon Musk's SpaceX successfully tests emergency capsule for astronauts

A view of the topography and construction site at Boca Chica, Texas at SpaceX's Starship Assembly Site Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2019, for the test vehicle known as Starship SN1.
A view of the topography and construction site at Boca Chica, Texas at SpaceX's Starship Assembly Site Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2019, for the test vehicle known as Starship SN1. Copyright (Miguel Roberts/The Brownsville Herald via AP)Miguel Roberts
By Euronews & AFP
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The test comes ahead of SpaceX's first transport of astronauts to the International Space Station.

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Elon Musk's SpaceX launched a successful test flight on Sunday, the last major simulation before it plans to dispatch a crew to the International Space Station (ISS).

The test simulated an emergency ejection of astronauts minutes after launch.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said after the test that he expects the first crewed mission could happen before June 2020.

No one was on board the rocket that launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The private company is under contract with the US' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

SpaceX put a new Crew Dragon capsule on top of a Falcon 9 rocket programmed to lift off into space.

As planned, the capsule's parachutes were deployed and it splashed into the Atlantic Ocean minutes after liftoff.

NASA's administrator Jim Bridenstine tweeted his congratulations for the team and said that recovery operations were underway.

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