Commercial Crew Program

NASA Adjusts Crew-10 Launch Date

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 now is targeting no earlier than late March 2025 to launch four crew members to the International Space Station.

The change gives NASA and SpaceX teams time to complete processing on a new Dragon spacecraft for the mission. The new spacecraft is set to arrive to the company’s processing facility in Florida in early January.

“Fabrication, assembly, testing, and final integration of a new spacecraft is a painstaking endeavor that requires great attention to detail,” said Steve Stich, manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. “We appreciate the hard work by the SpaceX team to expand the Dragon fleet in support of our missions and the flexibility of the station program and expedition crews as we work together to complete the new capsule’s readiness for flight.”

NASA and SpaceX assessed various options for managing the next crewed handover, including using another Dragon spacecraft and manifest adjustments. After careful consideration, the team determined that launching Crew-10 in late March, following completion of the new Dragon spacecraft, was the best option for meeting NASA’s requirements and achieving space station objectives for 2025.

NASA astronauts Anne McClain, commander, and Nichole Ayers, pilot; JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, mission specialist; and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov continue training for the Crew-10 mission at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

The agency’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will return to Earth following the arrival of Crew-10 to the orbital laboratory. Known as a handover period, it allows Crew-9 to share any lessons learned with the newly arrived crew and support a better transition for ongoing science and maintenance at the complex.

Crew-9, along with the full space station crew of Expedition 72, are focused on completing research aboard the microgravity laboratory, and are preparing for upcoming spacewalks. The space station recently received two resupply flights in November and is well-stocked with everything the crew needs, including food, water, clothing, and oxygen. The resupply spacecraft also carried special items for the crew to celebrate the holidays aboard the orbital platform.

Expedition 72 will end with the undocking and return of the Soyuz spacecraft carrying NASA astronaut Don Pettit. Expedition crews regularly spend long-duration missions aboard the space station, with average stays lasting about six months. Several people have supported longer missions, extending to about a year, to help the agency learn more about how humans adapt to spaceflight to prepare for missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 Spacecraft Relocates to New Port

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 crew members freed up space for an upcoming arrival to the International Space Station.

NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, pilot, transferred their Dragon spacecraft from the forward-facing port of the Harmony module to the Zenith port at the orbiting laboratory on Nov. 3. The move makes room for SpaceX’s 31st commercial resupply mission expected to launch Monday, Nov. 4, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Targeted docking for the spacecraft to the Harmony module port is on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

Hague and Gorbunov arrived at the space station on Sept. 29 to conduct experiments, research demonstrations, and spacewalks. Hague and Gorbunov, Wilmore and Williams, will return to Earth in February 2025.

Updates will be posted on the mission blog, @commercial_crew on X, and commercial crew on Facebook.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 Astronaut Returns to Houston

After an overnight stay at Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola in Florida, the NASA astronaut was released and returned to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston Saturday. The crew member is in good health and will resume normal post-flight reconditioning with other crew members.

As part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission, the astronaut was one of four crewmates who safely splashed down aboard their SpaceX Dragon spacecraft near Pensacola on Oct. 25. The crew members completed a 235-day mission, 232 days of which were spent aboard the International Space Station conducting scientific research.

To protect the crew member’s medical privacy, specific details on the individual’s condition and identity will not be shared.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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NASA Provides Update on Agency’s SpaceX Crew-8 Health

After safely splashing down on Earth as part of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission Friday, a NASA astronaut experienced a medical issue. NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin were flown together to Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola in Florida.

After medical evaluation at the hospital, three of the crew members departed Pensacola and have arrived at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

The one astronaut who remains at Ascension is in stable condition under observation as a precautionary measure. To protect the crew member’s medical privacy, specific details on the individual’s condition or identity will not be shared.

During its return to Earth, the SpaceX Dragon executed a normal entry and splashdown. Recovery of the crew and the spacecraft was without incident. During routine medical assessments on the recovery ship, the additional evaluation of the crew members was requested out of an abundance of caution.

We’re grateful to Ascension Sacred Heart for its support during this time, and we are proud of our team for its quick action to ensure the safety of our crew members.

The Crew-8 crew members splashed down aboard their Dragon spacecraft near Pensacola, Florida, to complete a 235-day mission, 232 days of which were spent aboard the International Space Station conducting scientific research.

NASA will provide additional information as it becomes available.

Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog, @space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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NASA Provides Agency’s SpaceX Crew-8 Mission Update

The following is attributed to Cheryl Warner, news chief, NASA’s Office of Communications:

“Following NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission’s safe splashdown and recovery off Florida’s coast early Friday morning, NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin were taken to a local medical facility for additional evaluation. The crew exited the Dragon spacecraft onto a recovery ship for standard post-flight medical evaluations. Out of an abundance of caution, all crew members were flown to the facility together. NASA will provide additional information as it becomes available.”

Splashdown! NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 Returns Safely to Earth

The SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft is seen as it splashes down in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, at 3:29 a.m. EDT, returning Crew-8 to Earth. Photo credit: NASA+

NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, splashed down safely in their SpaceX Dragon spacecraft off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, at 3:29 a.m. EDT, completing a seven-month science mission aboard the International Space Station.

Teams on the SpaceX recovery ship, including two fast boats, are securing Dragon and ensuring the spacecraft is safe for recovery. As the fast boat teams complete their work, the recovery ship will move into position to hoist Dragon onto the main deck with the Crew-8 crew members inside. Once on the main deck, the crew will be taken out of the spacecraft and undergo medical checks before a short helicopter ride to board a plane for NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

NASA and SpaceX will hold a media teleconference later this morning at 5 a.m. EDT to discuss the Crew-8 mission and the crew’s return to Earth. NASA will stream live coverage of the teleconference on the agency’s YouTube channel. Participants include:

Richard Jones, deputy manager, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program
Bill Spetch, operations and integration manager, NASA’s International Space Station Program
William Gerstenmaier, vice president, Build & Flight Reliability, SpaceX

Learn more about commercial crew and space station activities by following @commercial_crew, @Space_Station, @ISS_Research on X, as well as the Commercial Crew Facebook, ISS Facebook, and ISS Instagram accounts.

Dragon Deorbit Burn Complete; Next Up, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 Splashdown

NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick is seen inside the SpaceX Dragon capsule as NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 crew members return to Earth on Oct. 25, 2024. Dragon is scheduled to splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Pensacola, Florida, at 3:29 a.m. EDT. Photo credit: NASA+

After 236 days in space, NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, are less than an hour away from returning to Earth on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission.

The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft completed its deorbit burn as expected ahead of splashdown targeted for approximately 3:29 a.m. EDT off the coast of Pensacola, Florida.

Upon splashdown, Crew-8 will have orbited the Earth 3,776 times and traveled approximately 100,132,895 statute miles. In their 232 days spent aboard the space station, they also saw the arrival and departure of eight visiting spacecraft.

Four minutes before splashdown, the drogue parachutes will deploy at about 18,000 feet in altitude while Dragon is moving approximately 350 miles per hour. Less than a minute later, the main parachutes will deploy at about 6,000 feet in altitude while the spacecraft is moving approximately 119 miles per hour.

NASA’s live coverage will continue on NASA+ and the agency’s website until the crew is recovered from the spacecraft.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 Prepares for Deorbit Burn

NASA’s live coverage continues as NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, make their return to Earth inside the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission. Splashdown is scheduled for approximately 3:29 a.m. EDT off the coast of Pensacola, Florida. Recovery teams are taking positions in the recovery zone.

The critical deorbit burn is scheduled to start at 2:39 a.m. EDT and will last approximately eight minutes.

Live coverage of Crew-8’s return begins at 2:15 a.m. EDT on NASA+ and the agency’s website. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

NASA, SpaceX Set Time for Crew-8 Undocking

NASA and SpaceX are targeting 5:05 p.m. ET on Wednesday, October 23 for the Dragon spacecraft named Endeavour to autonomously undock from the International Space Station. After performing a series of departure burns to move away from the space station, Dragon will conduct multiple orbit-lowering maneuvers, jettison the trunk, and re-enter Earth’s atmosphere for splashdown off the coast of Florida approximately 34 hours later on Friday, Oct. 25.

NASA, SpaceX Target Wednesday for Crew-8 Undocking

NASA and SpaceX now are targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Oct. 23, for the agency’s Crew-8 mission to depart from the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft. An undocking on Wednesday would result in a splashdown on Friday, Oct. 25.

Forecasters have seen improvement in expected weather at some of the landing sites off the coast of Florida and continue to monitor conditions while considering splashdown sites and exact timing. The next weather briefing is scheduled for 9 a.m., Wednesday.