The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the manned Crew Dragon spacecraft attached takes off from launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

NASA and SpaceX made history Saturday, launching astronauts into space from US soil for the first time since the space shuttle era wrapped up in 2011.

It's also the first time a privately built spacecraft -- SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule, atop the company's Falcon 9 rocket -- has played cosmic taxi for astronauts.

History is made as @NASA_Astronauts launch from @NASAKennedy for the first time in nine years on the @SpaceX Crew Dragon: pic.twitter.com/alX1t1JBAt!

A few NASA astronauts had something to say.

Congratulations to @NASA & @SpaceX 👍🏻!

Congratulations @SpaceX on a successful launch.

Godspeed @Astro_Doug and @AstroBehnken in their Crew Dragon Capsule pic.twitter.com/ej9kVwyXpS.

Congratulations @Astro_Doug, @AstroBehnken, @NASA and @SpaceX

Congrats to @NASA and @SpaceX on the successful launch today

Another referenced a stuffed-dino mascot aboard the Crew Dragon, saying, "Didn't realize how much I needed the SpaceX Dinosaur until he popped in view

Didn’t realize how much I needed the SpaceX Dinosaur until he popped in view

Two humans (and one dinosaur) went to space today #SpaceX pic.twitter.com/U4CbHJShkw