Elon Musk Says He Was 'Overcome With Emotion' At SpaceX Launch

Speaking after the launch, the 48-year-old told the press that he was overwhelmed by it all.

He said: "I'm really quite overcome with emotion on this day. It's kind of hard to talk, frankly. I've spent 18 years working toward this goal, so it's hard to believe that it's happened.

"It is a little hard to process. I think at this point I haven't sorted out my emotions.

"This is hopefully the first step on a journey towards civilization on Mars, of life becoming multiplanetary, a base on the moon and expanding beyond Earth."

The shuttle was originally set to launch on Wednesday (27 May), however, due to the tumultuous weather, it was called off.

But despite the delay and uncertainty, Musk told the press yesterday that he wasn't nervous about it.

He said: "On Wednesday during the first countdown my adrenaline was railed at 100%, and when the launch was called off it went to 0 percent.

"I just basically collapsed and slept for the longest time I've slept in probably a year."

Adding: "Oddly enough, today (30 May), I don't know, it felt like the fates were aligned and I didn't feel nervous. I felt like it was going to work."

The mission marks the first time astronauts have been launched into orbit from US soil since the Space Shuttle programme was retired almost a decade ago.

And the craft itself is a pretty incredible feat of engineering, to be fair. It comes in two parts: one that provides the power for lift off, and a second that houses the intrepid space explorers.

All being well, the first part will separate and return of its own accord to a landing ship in the sea off Florida, which is impressive enough.

Then, the second part will continue the journey on into orbit, where it will eventually dock with the International Space Station 24 hours later on (at around 10.27am ET/15.27pm GMT).

The second part - called the Crew Dragon craft - will be tested for environmental control, manoeuvring thrusters, and displays and controls.

The mission also represents the final step on SpaceX's journey to being certified by NASA's Commercial Crew programme for regular flights carrying astronauts to the International Space Centre.