Four astronauts launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Florida on Thursday to begin a six-month scientific mission on the International Space Station, completing an eight-hour flight that marks the fastest crewed American journey to the orbital laboratory.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Thursday morning, carrying an autonomous Crew Dragon capsule into orbit. The 25-story booster roared away from the pad using its nine Merlin engines amid billowing, glowing vapor. Dense morning clouds threatened to scrub the countdown before clearing just enough to allow a safe departure.
The launch followed a three-week delay caused by repairs to a fuel system leak in the Dragon capsule. Once aloft, the reusable first-stage booster separated within three minutes and returned automatically to Earth, while the upper stage pushed the capsule into orbit about nine minutes after liftoff.
Jessica Watkins Makes History Commanding the Crew-13 Flight
The four-member international crew is led by NASA astronaut and geologist Jessica Watkins, who becomes the first Black woman to command a crewed flight into orbit. Watkins previously worked with NASA’s Curiosity rover on Mars about a decade ago and flew to the space station in 2022.
The mission represents the 13th operational flight SpaceX has launched for NASA, excluding a 2020 test flight. The crew adopted the designation Crew-13, selecting a mission patch that honors the perilous 1970 Apollo 13 lunar mission which successfully returned its crew to Earth.
Joining Watkins are NASA astronaut Luke Delaney, a former U.S. Marine; Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk, a Royal Canadian Air Force colonel; and cosmonaut Sergey Tetryatnikov of Russia, a former diver. For Delaney, Kutryk, and Tetryatnikov, the flight marks their first journey into space. Kutryk’s wife is expecting a child during his absence.
“Thank you for this wonderful ride.”
Jessica Watkins, NASA astronaut and mission commander
Docking at the International Space Station and Biomedical Research Goals
The spacecraft completed its transit and docked with the space station roughly 420 kilometers above Earth at approximately 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time (2300 GMT). Favorable orbital positioning allowed the capsule to execute the fastest American crewed arrival at the station to date.
Upon arrival, the four newcomers were greeted by seven resident astronauts aboard the laboratory, including the four members of the Crew-12 team. The outgoing crew members are preparing to return to Earth after spending more than seven months on the station.
The newly arrived team will spend six months living and working in orbit, with their return scheduled for the upcoming spring. Their primary schedule centers on biomedical research and human performance studies in microgravity.
Researchers on Earth and in orbit will focus on how microgravity affects human blood circulation and blood clotting. The collected health data is intended to guide physiological planning for future deep-space exploration missions.
