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Crew-10: SpaceX Launches Relief Crew For Stranded Boeing Starliner Astronauts
Crew-10: SpaceX Launches Relief Crew For Stranded Boeing Starliner Astronauts
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[Update] SpaceX Crew-10 Astronauts Arrive At The Space Station To Relieve Stranded Boeing Starliner Crew
[Update] SpaceX Crew-10 Astronauts Arrive At The Space Station To Relieve Stranded Boeing Starliner Crew
SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance docked with the Harmony module of the International Space Station (ISS) at 0404 UTC Sunday, on March 16, while the two spacecraft were flying 418 kilometers above the Atlantic ocean. The hatches between the spacecraft and the ISS opened at 0535 UTC, allowing four new astronauts to float aboard the orbiting lab.
"It's such a great honor for us to be part of this program," Crew-10 mission specialist Takuya Onishi of JAXA (the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) said shortly after docking. "We have a lot of exciting work ahead of us that we are looking forward to. Again, thank you very much to everybody who helped us to get here."
Astronaut Don Pettit in the space station, captured the approach and docking of Endurance with the orbiting lab, which he posted on X, Sunday.
The arrival of the Crew-10 astronauts -- Onishi, Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers and Kirill Peskov -- marks a significant step towards the return of Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been stranded on the ISS since June 2024 due to issues with the Boeing Starliner spacecraft.
The Crew-10 astronauts will relieve Wilmore and Williams, along with two folks who have been living on the ISS for a while now -- NASA's Nick Hague and Roscosmos' Aleksandr Gorbunov. Hague and Gorbunov arrived at the station in late September, on SpaceX's Crew-9 mission.
Crew-10 will stay on the ISS for about six months, while Wilmore and Williams, along with Hague and Gorbunov, are scheduled to depart the station in SpaceX Crew-9 Dragon next week.
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A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched the Crew-10 mission from Launch Complex-39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, at 2303 UTC on March 14. The mission, commanded by NASA astronaut Anne McClain and piloted by NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers, also includes mission specialists Takuya Onishi of JAXA and Kirill Peskov of Roscosmos.
The Falcon 9 second stage rocketed onward for another 7.5 minutes following first-stage separation, releasing Crew Dragon Endurance and its crew into low Earth orbit on a trajectory to catch up to the ISS within about 28 hours.
The crew is en route to the International Space Station (ISS) for a six-month rotation, which will also facilitate the return of two NASA astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, who have been on the station since June 2024.
"Thank you to all of the teams from across the world who contributed to the launch today," McClain said shortly after the picture-perfect spacecraft separation. "Spaceflight is tough, but humans are tougher," she added. "Days like today are made possible only when people choose the harder right over the easier wrong, build relationships, choose cooperation and believe in the inherent goodness of all people across the world. My family and friends, without you, I would not be here. Explore boldly, live gratefully, and go Crew-10!”
The spacecraft is expected to dock autonomously to the forward-facing port of the station’s Harmony module at approximately 0330 UTC on March 15.
The Crew-10 astronauts are scheduled for a six-month stay on the ISS. McClain is making her second trip to the ISS; Ayers: is on her first mission; Onishi is making his second flight; while Peskov is on his first flight to the space station.
Following a brief handover period, crew-9 including NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov are scheduled to return to Earth no earlier than March 19. Crew-9's Dragon Freedom is expected to depart the station a few days from now.
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