SpaceX Crew-13 Blasts Off for International Space Station

SpaceX Crew-13 Blasts Off for International Space Station

Four new crew members for the International Space Station blasted off on Thursday for the orbital laboratory, where they will stay for approximately six months. The SpaceX Crew-13 launch used a Falcon 9 rocket that lifted off at 11:10am local time from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Americans Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian Joshua Kutryk and Russian Sergey Teteryatnikov were expected to reach the ISS aboard their Dragon spacecraft in about eight hours, according to Nasa, which would make it the shortest such trip for a US vessel. The duration of the journey depends greatly on the distance between the ISS and the spacecraft at the time of launch. It took more than 30 hours for the last crew that launched from American soil to reach the station.

What the SpaceX Crew-13 launch sets in motion

The new ISS crew was initially meant to arrive in mid-September, but its launch was postponed due to a leak aboard the Dragon capsule. The four astronauts will spend around six months running science experiments devoted to human health and performance in orbit.

Crew-13 will take over from Americans Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, Frenchwoman Sophie Adenot and Russian Andrey Fedyaev. Crew-12 is set to return to Earth as early as Monday, though the schedule depends on weather conditions.

Canadian astronaut Kutryk will have an extra reason to look forward to his return in six months: his wife is due to give birth during his stay in space.

An ageing station, an enduring partnership

Continuously inhabited for the last quarter-century, the ageing ISS is scheduled to be pushed out of Earth’s orbit before crashing into one of Earth’s oceans sometime around 2030.

Despite many international cooperation agreements falling apart after Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022, the United States and other ISS partners have continued working with Russia on the space station. The Crew-13 roster itself reflects that: a Russian cosmonaut flying alongside two Americans and a Canadian on a US commercial rocket.

The mission is the 13th long-duration crew that Nasa has flown aboard a SpaceX vehicle since the company began sending US astronauts to orbit in 2020.

Frequently asked questions

Who is on the Crew-13 mission?

Nasa astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov.

How long will the flight to the ISS take?

About eight hours, which Nasa says would be the shortest trip to the station for a US spacecraft. The previous crew from American soil took more than 30 hours.

Why was the launch delayed?

It was initially meant to happen in mid-September but was postponed after a leak was found aboard the Dragon capsule.

How long will the crew stay on the station?

Approximately six months, running science experiments before Crew-12’s replacements hand over and return to Earth.