The four would-be citizen astronauts poised to ride a SpaceX rocket ship around the globe as the first all-civilian crew launched into orbit said on Tuesday they were eager for liftoff on the eve of their flight, feeling only "the good kind" of jitters.

"I was just worried that this moment would never come in my life. Let's get going, let's do it," said Sian Proctor, 51, a geoscience professor, artist and lifelong space enthusiast who was a 2009 finalist in NASA's astronaut candidate program before she was cut.

Ms Proctor also disclosed she and her flightmates received a telephone call from one of her personal heroes, former first lady Michelle Obama, wishing them well, an honor she said "would stay with me the rest of my life."

The "Inspiration4" quartet are due for liftoff as early as 8 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday (01.00 BST) from launch complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida for an orbital flight expected to last about three days before splashdown.

Read the full story here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2021/09/15/all-civilian-spacex-crew-feels-good-kind-jitters-launch/

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