Gorgeous Image Caps Big Week For Space Exploration

In case other headlines got in the way, it's been a fun week for people looking up. To start with, here's a gorgeous shot of the SpaceX Dragon launch this morning. It's the craft's fourth unmanned supply mission to the International Space Station, and it comes on the heels of some exciting milestones for commercial spaceflight. Both SpaceX and Boeing were selected to proceed with development of capsules that will take people into orbit. Each company will have the ability to send a seven-person ship up by 2017. Looking out even further, NASA also just recently unveiled an enormous 170-foot tall tool that will be used to build the rocket for future missions to asteroids and Mars. Last, but not least, just minutes ago, NASA's MAVEN mission reached Mars orbit to begin surveying the atmosphere! It should be joined by an Indian Mars Orbiter Mission on Tuesday.