28-03-2025
Williamsburg astronaut announced as Commander for upcoming ISS mission
WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (WAVY) — NASA recently announced the four-team SpaceX crew for its upcoming International Space Station mission, including one woman from Williamsburg.
According to a release, the crew will consist of NASA astronauts Commander Zena Cardman, from Williamsburg, Va., Pilot Mike Fincke, from Emsworth, Pa., JAXA astronaut Mission Specialist Kimiya Yui, from Japan and Roscosmos cosmonaut Mission Specialist Oleg Platonov, from Russia. Platonov and Yui are expected to join the crew by July.
This mission will be Cardman's first spaceflight after being assigned as a NASA astronaut in 2017. Cardman, who primarily focuses on subsurface environments, graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's in marine sciences. Prior to her selection, Cardman was pursuing a doctorate in Geosciences.
Cardmen, who is also a graduate of Bruton High School in Williamsburg, trained as a commander on SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft and worked alongside NASA on several field tests, including Pavilion Lake and BASALT.
The mission will consist of a long-duration science expedition onboard the ISS, and is the 11th crew rotation with SpaceX to the ISS. While onboard, the crew will conduct both scientific investigations and demonstrations to help prepare for future human missions to the moon.
More information about the mission, as well as the crew, can be found on NASA's website here.
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