PORT CANAVERAL, Fla. — Jetty Park, a popular location on Florida's Space Coast to view launches, filled to capacity Sunday morning with visitors eager to witness a Falcon 9 rocket explosion.

The explosion was expected — it was part of a test launch of a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, intended to demonstrate the systems designed to jettison the spacecraft away from the rocket in case of an emergency during an actual launch.

At Jetty Park, spectators enjoyed beautiful weather and had a spectacular view of the launch. According to Port Canaveral officials, the jetty was full by 8 a.m. for the 10:30 a.m. launch.

They said the last time it was that packed was during the Falcon Heavy launch. 

Daxton Dow, 8, and his family woke up before sunrise to secure their spot at the jetty so Daxton could experience is first live launch.

“They're going to launch it up, and they're going to blow up the rest of it,” Daxton said.

Decked in NASA gear, he said he's been watching launches from his backyard since he was about 5 years old and was very excited to see the historic test as close as possible to the Kennedy Space Center.

“I want to be an astrophysicist when I grow up," he said.

Port Canaveral officials say that this year, with so many big launches, they expect the jetty to keep getting packed to capacity, so they advise visitors to get there early to get a spot.

SpaceX and NASA hope to carry two astronauts aboard a Crew Dragon to the International Space Station in the next few months.