4 Astronauts Launch to Space Station Aboard Elon Musk's SpaceX Rocket
SpaceX's latest mission to the International Space Station launched successfully on Thursday
The Crew-11 team includes two NASA astronauts, one member of JAXA and one cosmonaut
They will relieve the Crew-10 aboard the ISS and stay for approximately six monthsSpaceX's latest mission to the International Space Station launched successfully this week.
The Falcon 9 rocket blasted off shortly before noon local time on Friday, Aug. 1, from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, taking four team members into orbit.
Their six-month stay will mark SpaceX's 11th operational astronaut mission to the ISS under its contract with NASA's Commercial Crew Program, almost five years after its Crew-1 mission in November 2020.
The plan is for the Crew-11 capsule, named Endeavour, to dock with the ISS on Saturday, Aug. 2, and relieve the four Crew-10 members who arrived in March.
Crew-11 includes two NASA astronauts, mission commander Zena Cardman and pilot Mike Fincke, as well as two mission specialists, Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.
Elon Musk's space technology company posted live updates from the launch on X, writing, "All systems are looking good and weather is 90% favorable" a few hours prior to launch.
The Falcon 9 rocket is a different SpaceX craft than those involved with the company's recent failed launches.
Four unmanned test flights for the company's Starship program — Musk's latest step toward his goal of sending humans to Mars by 2026 — have exploded during testing in 2025.
In March, Starship's eighth flight test exploded at Starbase, SpaceX's launch site in southern Texas, which led planes to be grounded at several airports.
On May 27, the ninth test lifted off at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. While the vehicle successfully reached the Earth's orbit, an apparent propellant leak caused a loss of altitude. According to ABC News, the spacecraft began spinning and mission control could no longer control it.
Debris from the rocket fell into the Indian Ocean, per The New York Times.
Then, in June, a Starship rocket exploded into flames during testing at Starbase, sending a massive fireball into the sky.
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SpaceX released a statement following the explosion, saying, "On Wednesday, June 18 at approximately 11 p.m. CT, the Starship preparing for the tenth flight test experienced a major anomaly while on a test stand at Starbase. A safety clear area around the site was maintained throughout the operation and all personnel are safe and accounted for."
CEO Elon Musk kept his response to the explosion much simpler, replying to a post on X that showed photos of the aftermath with the snarky comment, "Just a scratch."
'Room for improvement,' the billionaire CEO responded.
https://people-app.onelink.me/HNIa/kz7l4cuf
The launch comes days after NASA employees signed a public letter to President Donald Trump and his administration, urging them not to make massive cuts to the space agency — many of which have been proposed by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), formerly headed by Musk.
'We are compelled to speak up when our leadership prioritizes political momentum over human safety, scientific advancement and efficient use of public resources,' the employees wrote.
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