---
title: "This NASA App Lets You Control a SpaceX Spacecraft"
description: "A free new app called “Rocket Science: Ride 2 Station” created by NASA lets you control your very own SpaceX Crew Dragon or Boeing Starliner. It’s a game that allows you to explore the basics of what it’s like to run a commercial crew mission into space. The app runs you through all the preparatory […]"
date: "2019-11-14"
modified: "2019-11-14"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-app-control-spacex-spacecraft"
categories:
  - "NASA"
  - "Space"
  - "SpaceX"
tags:
  - "boeing"
  - "NASA"
  - "SpaceX"
  - "the digest"
---

# This NASA App Lets You Control a SpaceX Spacecraft

![A free new app called "Rocket Science: Ride 2 Station," created by NASA, lets you control your very own SpaceX Crew Dragon or Boeing Starliner.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/nasa-app-control-spacex-spacecraft.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: NASA\</em\>*

## Ready for Liftoff

A [free new app](<https://rocketsciencec2e.ksc.nasa.gov/>) called "Rocket Science: Ride 2 Station," created by NASA, lets you control your very own SpaceX Crew Dragon or Boeing Starliner. It's a game that allows you to explore the basics of what it's like to run a commercial crew mission into space.

The app runs you through all the preparatory steps, from choosing your spacecraft and crew to launching and docking maneuvers with the International Space Station. For an added level of difficulty, you can even choose to dock with the station in full manual mode.

## Riding 2 Station

Throughout the process of building and launching their rocket, users are run through what each component and crew member does to complete the mission, making the app educational as well as fun. The crew members players can choose from are actual astronauts with their own respective bios.

Sure, the 3D animations leave something to be desired — but it's a valiant effort in trying to educate space enthusiasts about what it's like to run a commercial crew mission.

The app is available [on the iOS App Store](<https://apps.apple.com/us/app/rocket-science-ride-2-station/id1486222141>) and can also be played in a desktop browser [here](<https://rocketsciencec2e.ksc.nasa.gov/>).

**READ MORE:** [New NASA app puts you in the pilot’s seat of Boeing’s Starliner or SpaceX’s Crew Dragon](<https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/13/new-nasa-app-puts-you-in-the-pilots-seat-of-boeings-starliner-or-spacexs-crew-dragon/>) \[*TechCrunch*\]

**More on Crew Dragon:** *[Here’s Why Elon Musk is Feuding With the Head of NASA](<https://futurism.com/elon-musk-nasa-head-feud>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)