SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft race toward orbit will go through several maneuvers.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft race toward orbit after launching from Launch Complex-40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., at 10:43 a.m. EST. The Dragon capsule will go through several maneuvers before it re-enters the atmosphere and splashes down in the Pacific Ocean about 500 miles west of the coast of Mexico.

This is first demonstration flight for NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, which will provide cargo flights to the International Space Station in the future. Photo credit: NASA/Kevin O'Connell