Read the video transcript here
Picture book start for four astronauts on the way to the International Space Station ISS.
At 3:03 a.m. German time, the SpaceX rocket lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and shortly afterwards reached a speed of 28,000 km / h.
Also on board was the German materials researcher Mathias Müller - shortly after taking off, he was obviously in a good mood waving to the camera.
The start has already been postponed twice - now it finally went into space after Maurer had been preparing for it for years.
Mathias Maurer, astronaut
“I don't shudder for a moment. I really want to enjoy everything 100 percent and take it with me. If it has to suffer a little, then I'll accept that because that's all part of the package. "
Together with his US colleagues, the German is now traveling through space for almost a day - during his stay, which is planned until April, he will work on around a hundred experiments and complete an external assignment.