NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 Launches to International Space Station

SpaceX launched its Crew-13 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, October 1, 2026. The mission carried four astronauts: NASA's Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA's Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos's Sergey Teteryatnikov. The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida at 11:10 a.m. EDT.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman hailed Crew-13 as a demonstration of America's unmatched human spaceflight capability and commercial partnerships. He emphasized that Watkins, Delaney, Kutryk, and Teteryatnikov would carry out essential work aboard the ISS while helping prepare for upcoming missions to the Moon and beyond.

The spacecraft is set to dock autonomously with the Harmony module of the ISS at around 7 p.m. This marks the fastest launch-to-docking by a U.S. spacecraft in ISS history. Dr. Lori Glaze, NASA's associate administrator for Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate, highlighted the importance of the ISS in sustaining presence in Earth's orbit and advancing exploration plans for the Moon and Mars.

Throughout the 7-hour, 50-minute flight, SpaceX will monitor automatic spacecraft maneuvers from its mission control center in California, while NASA will oversee ISS operations from its Houston Mission Control Center. NASA's live coverage of the arrival will begin at 5:20 p.m., covering rendezvous, docking, and hatch opening.

Upon docking, the crew will transition from their spacesuits, prepare cargo for offload, and open the hatch to the Harmony module around 8:45 p.m. They will join the Expedition 75 crew, which includes NASA's Anil Menon and Roscosmos's Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. After brief handover, NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission, comprising astronauts Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, ESA's Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos's Andrey Fedyaev, will return to Earth.

During its mission, Crew-13 will contribute to research on human stem cell-derived tissues for personalized medicine, disease modeling, and pharmaceutical testing. They will also explore crop production using an autonomous plant growth system and test plant growth outside dedicated facilities. Additionally, the crew will continue human-health studies examining blood-flow abnormalities in microgravity and test an inflight diagnostic device for astronaut health monitoring.

Crew-13 is part of NASA's Low Earth Orbit Program, which collaborates with private companies to provide reliable access to space, support research and development aboard the ISS, and enable future missions beyond low Earth orbit.