Nasa chief Jared Isaacman says Crew-12 have had an "absolutely wonderful start" and praises the "very impressive" return of the Falcon 9 rocket less than eight minutes after lift off.

He adds that the crew are now safely on their way to the International Space Station and they are continuing to monitor progress.

He says the crew will continue critical scientific research and will make history in a number of ways.

Steve Stich, the manager of the Commercial Crew programme, adds that the crew are doing well in orbit and settling into their off duty period.

He adds that all systems on the Dragon capsule are working well.

"I understand it’s the first time Nasa has ever launched on Friday the 13th. So pretty amazing times," he says.

Back on Earth, Nasa has just begun a post-launch news conference providing an update on how the mission has gone.

You can follow along live at the top of the page.

Crew-12 is successfully in orbit and now in microgravity. Objects can be seen floating around the astronauts as they move further and further away from Earth.

The four astronauts remain strapped down but now have their visors up and are able to look around.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Nasa

Image source, Getty Images

Costing an estimated $150 billion (£110 billion) to build, the International Space Station is the most expensive object created by humans.

Floating in an orbit around 250 miles (402km) above the earth, it has been in space since 1998 and has been continuously manned since 2000.

It's made up of many pressurised modules created by the space agencies of the USA, Russia, Europe, Japan and Canada, and has been expanded over the decades as new modules are added.

At 109 meters long (356ft), it has the living space of average a six-bedroom house, and has six sleeping quarters, two bathrooms, a gym, and a 360-degree view bay window.

On board, its crew conduct experiments and testing technologies which, in Nasa's words, are "unlocking discoveries not possible on Earth".

Hugh Schofield
Paris Correspondent

Image source, Reuters

France has been watching with pride and excitement as its second female astronaut took off on the SpaceX rocket from Cape Canaveral.

Sophie Adenot, 43, is an airforce helicopter pilot who grew up in rural Burgundy.

She remembers the day in 1996 when she was inspired by ideas of going into space. It was when France’s first female astronaut Claudie Haigneré left Earth for the Russian space station Mir.

"I was 14 and it was like a switch was turned on in my head. If a woman can do it, then why not me?

"When I told my family of my dream, they didn’t laugh. They said, it’ll be tough but go for it."

Adenot’s childhood was in the small town of Corbigny in the Nièvre department 200 kilometres southeast of Paris, where her father was a lawyer and her mother a pharmacist.

She trained at Supaéro in Toulouse - France’s elite university for aerospace studies - before joining the airforce, and eventually becoming a helicopter test pilot.

It has now been around 45 minutes since lift off and the Dragon capsule is traveling at around 27,000 kmh (16,777mph) towards its destination.

Astronauts Sophie Adenot and Jack Hathaway are now experiencing weightlessness for the first time as they drift through space.

The crew will be able to open their visors and get out of their suits during their ride towards the International Space Station, Nasa says.

They'll have plenty of time to take it all in - it will take them about 34 hours to get there.

A little earlier we reported that SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft had completed its separation from the Falcon 9 rocket that helped launch it into space.

The Dragon, carrying four crew members, is now on its way to the International Space Station.

Astronaut Sophie Adenot describes how the mission is "one small moment in exploring our world and beyond".

"From up here we are reminded that we are all connected," she says. "Take care of one another, dream big together and keep reaching forward. That is how humanity moves forward."

Jack Hathaway adds that the astronauts can "fly with confidence because we know the finest minds on Earth are watching our backs".

Image source, NASA

The Dragon capsule has now left Falcon the rocket and will power itself for the remainder of its journey to the International Space Station.

Commander Jessica Meir thanks Nasa, SpaceX and Falcon staff as she jokes that it has been "quite a ride".

"Looking at our planet from above it is immediately clear that everything is interconnected," she says. "The vast oceans, the continuing landmasses... we are one humankind."

"We know it is utterly unique, fragile and must be protected," Meir adds. "Crew-12 is grateful and ready for the journey ahead."

Image source, SpaceX/Nasa

"We thank you for flying with Falcon 9," says mission control as the Dragon capsule breaks free of the rocket.

"Dragon will take you from here."

After briefly hearing from the Falcon launch team, who pass on their well wishes to the astronauts, we are hearing from Crew-12 themselves.

"Thank you team that was quite the ride," one of the astronauts says. "We have left the earth but the earth has not left us."

Having powered the astronauts into space the Falcon 9 rocket has successfully landed back on Earth.

A burst of flame breaks out as the rocket approaches its landing site before landing comfortably back on solid ground less than eight minutes after the blast off.

Image source, NASA

Cheers break out as a booster successfully separates from the rocket and begins to move back towards Earth.

The Dragon capsule is still attached to part of the rocket and continuing its journey into space.

Shortly afterwards the astronauts come into view for the first time in the launch. They will experience weightlessness in just a few moments time.

Image source, NASA/SpaceX

"Go Dragon, go Falcon and God speed Crew-12," says mission control as Falcon 9 travels faster than the speed of sound towards the International Space Station.

The rocket blasts up into space and is smoothly through the first few minutes of its mission.

Image source, SpaceX

The Falcon 9 rocket is blasting off - here we go!

We are now just seconds away from blast off and Crew-12 beginning their journey to the International Space Station.

A reminder - you can watch live on the stream at the top of our page.

A reminder you can watch every moment live above.

Image source, SpaceX

There can never really be a definite launch date and time for a rocket, due to the very specific weather conditions needed for safety.

This launch was initially scheduled for Wednesday, but Nasa decided to bump it to Thursday due to weather conditions along the flight path of the rocket - before delaying the launch again.

But we're very close now - less than 15 minutes to go - and everything is looking good. As we've reported, SpaceX said about 30 minutes ago that "Crew-12 is go for launch".

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, EPA

On board the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft are two Nasa astronauts commander Jessica Meir (USA) and pilot Jack Hathaway (USA).

They're accompanied by European Space Agency astronaut and mission specialist Sophie Adenot (France), and Roscocosmos cosmonaut and mission specialist Andrey Fedyaev (Russia).

The four are known as Crew-12, because they make up SpaceX's 12th crewed rotational flight to the International Space Station.

The crew has spent the last few days quarantined at Nasa's Kennedy Space Center in Florida since arriving at the launch site on 6 February.

Image source, NASA./James Blair