SpaceX launches 13th long-duration astronaut crew to International Space Station

CAPE CANAVERAL, FLORIDA: A SpaceX rocket lifted off from Florida on Thursday with a crew of two US astronauts, a Canadian astronaut and a Russian cosmonaut headed to the International Space Station for a science mission devoted to human health and performance in orbit.

The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket, topped with an autonomously operated Crew Dragon capsule carrying the four-member crew, was launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, along Florida’s Atlantic Coast.

A live webcast showed the 25-story-tall spacecraft thundering off the launch pad as its nine Merlin engines roared to life in billowing, incandescent plumes of vapor.

If all goes as planned, Falcon 9’s reusable lower-stage booster will separate from the rest of the vehicle within three minutes of launch and fly itself back to Earth for a return landing, while the rocket’s upper stage climbs higher, carrying the Crew Dragon toward orbit.

The capsule is expected to thrust itself into orbit about nine minutes after launch and begin the cruise phase of its eight-hour voyage to the space station. Docking with the orbiting laboratory platform some 250 miles (420 km) above Earth is planned for about 7 p.m. EDT (2300 GMT).

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The mission marks the 13th long-duration space station team that NASA has flown aboard a SpaceX launch vehicle since the rocket venture founded in 2002 by Elon Musk began sending US astronauts to orbit in May 2020. The company went public in a record-breaking IPO in July.

The launch also comes days after SpaceX launched its next-generation Starship spacecraft on its first trip to orbit and first commercial satellite deployment, marking the vehicle’s 14th uncrewed test flight since 2023.

Crew 13 is led by geologist-turned-astronaut Jessica Watkins, 38, making her second voyage to space and becoming the first NASA astronaut to fly twice aboard a Crew Dragon. Seated beside her in the pilot’s chair is fellow NASA astronaut Luke Delaney, 47, a former test pilot and fighter pilot making his debut in space.

Rounding out Crew 13 are two other spaceflight rookies ranked as mission specialists — Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk, 44, a former test and fighter pilot, and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, 37, an engineer who specialized in the operation of submarines.

The four crewmates are to be welcomed aboard the space station by seven current occupants of the orbital outpost, including the four members of Crew-12 who are due to fly back to Earth soon as their seven-month-plus mission comes to an end.

The latest arrivals are expected to focus their attention on a series of biomedical and human performance studies, including research on how microgravity affects blood circulation and clotting, and gathering health data to inform future space missions.

The ISS, which spans the length of a football field and ranks as the largest human-made object in space, has been continuously operated by a US-Russian-led consortium that includes Canada, Japan and 11 European countries.

The first hardware for the outpost was launched more than a quarter-century ago. NASA has said it is committed to keeping the space station operating through 2030.