SpaceX had achieved a rapid delivery of a new crew to the International Space Station as representatives completed the trip in merely 15 hours on Saturday.
Following a launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the multinational crew of four astronauts, including representatives from the US, Russia, and Japan, arrived at the International Space Station aboard their SpaceX capsule.
The crew will reside at the orbiting laboratory for a minimum of six months, taking the place of colleagues who have been stationed there since March. SpaceX is scheduled to return the previous four crew members as early as Wednesday
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying a Dragon spacecraft was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on August 1, 2025, en route to the International Space Station. The crew comprises NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japan’s Kimiya Yui, and Russia’s Oleg Platonov. Notably, each of these astronauts was initially assigned to different missions.
Upon docking of the capsule at an altitude above the South Pacific, astronaut Mike Fincke communicated to the space station with the greeting, “Hello, space station!”
NASA reassigned astronauts Zena Cardman and Stephanie Wilson from the SpaceX Crew-9 mission to accommodate Boeing Starliner test pilots Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. This decision allowed Wilmore and Williams, whose mission duration extended from one week to over nine months on the International Space Station, to return on the Crew-9 Dragon capsule next February.
On August 1, 2025, three astronauts and one cosmonaut prepared to board their transportation vehicles to the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center. Following liftoff, the SpaceX capsule achieved docking with the International Space Station within a span of 15 hours.
Mike Fincke and Kimiya Yui were in training for the forthcoming Starliner mission. However, due to issues with Starliner’s thrusters and other problems that have led to its grounding until 2026, they were reassigned to fly with SpaceX. Meanwhile, Oleg Platonov was removed from the Soyuz launch schedule a couple of years ago owing to an undisclosed illness.
The arrival of the new crew brings the International Space Station’s population to a temporary total of 11 astronauts. In preparation for their arrival, the station’s existing crew had arranged for cold drinks and hot food to greet the incoming astronauts.
The crew’s journey was rapid compared to typical US spaceflight durations. However, the record for the fastest trip to the International Space Station is held by the Russians, who achieved this in an expedited time of three hours.
