What You Need to Know About NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 Mission

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 mission will launch four astronauts to the International Space Station on October 1 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The crew includes NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov. Watkins will serve as spacecraft commander, Delaney as pilot, and Kutryk and Teteryatnikov as mission specialists. The mission marks the 13th crew rotation flight with SpaceX under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

During the mission, the crew will conduct science experiments to advance research for future Moon and Mars missions and improve life on Earth. Watkins will be the first NASA astronaut to launch twice aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. The crew will study human stem-cell derived tissues to aid heart disease and Parkinson’s research, explore crop production for long-duration spaceflight, and test new diagnostic medical equipment for monitoring crew health.

The Crew-13 spacecraft, named Grace, previously flew in summer 2025 for Axiom Mission 4. Support teams are preparing a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster for its third flight. After launch, Falcon 9 will accelerate Dragon to approximately 17,500 mph, with the crew monitoring maneuvers to autonomously dock at the station’s Harmony module. The crew will join Expedition 75, including NASA astronauts Jessica Meir, Anil Menon, and Jack Hathaway.

The mission will welcome NASA’s SpaceX 35th commercial resupply flight and Northrop Grumman’s CRS-25 mission later this year. Crew-13 will conduct research to understand blood flow abnormalities in space and support crop production studies critical for longer-duration missions. After a handover period, the Crew-12 astronauts will return to Earth, concluding their mission aboard the station.