NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 Launches to International Space Station
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 mission launched Thursday, sending four astronauts to the International Space Station for a six-month science expedition focused on medical and plant research.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at 11:10 a.m. EDT Thursday from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, carrying NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov aboard a Dragon spacecraft. The launch marked the fastest U.S. spacecraft arrival at the station, with docking expected at 7 p.m. following a 7-hour, 50-minute flight. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman highlighted the mission’s role in advancing commercial partnerships and preparing for future lunar and deep-space missions.
Live coverage from NASA’s Mission Control in Houston tracked the Dragon’s autonomous docking to the Harmony module’s forward port, while SpaceX monitored maneuvers from its control center in Hawthorne, California. After docking, the crew will change out of spacesuits, unload cargo, and open the hatch to the station around 8:45 p.m. The new arrivals will join Expedition 75 astronauts Anil Menon, Pyotr Dubrov, and Anna Kikina before the Crew-12 team departs.
During their six-month stay, Crew-13 will conduct research using microgravity to produce human stem cell-derived tissues for personalized medicine, disease modeling, and pharmaceutical testing. The crew will also test a new autonomous plant growth system to study crop production outside dedicated facilities, contributing to long-term space agriculture.
The mission supports NASA’s Low Earth Orbit Program, which collaborates with private companies to sustain research on the space station and prepare for missions beyond low Earth orbit. Studies will examine blood-flow abnormalities in microgravity and test an inflight diagnostic device to monitor astronaut health, advancing tools for future exploration.