Four crew members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-13 mission launched at 11:10 a.m. EDT Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026, from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, bound for the International Space Station. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carried a Dragon spacecraft with NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov aboard.
What happened
NASA said the Dragon spacecraft will dock autonomously to the forward port of the station's Harmony module at approximately 7 p.m., making it what the agency described as the fastest launch-to-docking by a U.S. spacecraft in the history of the International Space Station.
During Dragon's approximately 7-hour, 50-minute flight, SpaceX will monitor a series of automatic spacecraft maneuvers from its mission control center in Hawthorne, California, according to NASA. NASA said it will monitor space station operations from the Mission Control Center at Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASA said its live arrival coverage begins at 5:20 p.m. for rendezvous, docking and hatch opening. After docking, the crew members will change out of their spacesuits and prepare cargo for offload before opening the hatch to the Harmony module around 8:45 p.m.
Who is aboard
Watkins, Delaney, Kutryk and Teteryatnikov will join the Expedition 75 crew, which NASA said includes NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina, already aboard the station.
After a brief handover, NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission will return to Earth with NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, the agency said.
The research plan
NASA said Crew-13 will use microgravity to produce human stem cell-derived tissues for improved personalized medicine, disease modeling and pharmaceutical testing for conditions such as heart disease and Parkinson's.
The crew will also explore crop production through a new, mostly autonomous plant growth system and test how plants grow outside dedicated facilities, according to the agency. NASA added that the crew will continue human-health studies examining factors linked to blood-flow abnormalities in microgravity and will test a new inflight diagnostic device to monitor astronaut health.
NASA said Crew-13 is part of its Low Earth Orbit Program, which partners with private companies to provide reliable access to space, support research and development aboard the space station, and enable future missions beyond low Earth orbit.
What NASA said
"Crew-13 is another demonstration of America's unmatched capability in human spaceflight and the strength of our commercial partnerships," said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, who added that the crew will help build "the experience and capabilities needed for ambitious missions to the Moon and beyond."
Dr. Lori Glaze, associate administrator of NASA's Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate, said: "Our steady cadence of commercial crew launches demonstrates the essential role the International Space Station plays in sustaining our presence in Earth's orbit and sharpening the tools we'll take forward to the Moon and Mars."
What to do
- NASA says its live arrival coverage begins at 5:20 p.m. for rendezvous, docking and hatch opening, and lists viewing platforms at nasa.gov/live.
Key facts and where they come from
- Crew-13 lifted off at 11:10 a.m. EDT on Oct. 1, 2026 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Four crew members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-13 mission launched at 11:10 a.m. EDT Thursday from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida
- NASA says the docking will be the fastest launch-to-docking by a U.S. spacecraft in ISS history.
making it the fastest launch-to-docking by a U.S. spacecraft in the history of the International Space Station
- The Dragon flight to docking lasts about 7 hours and 50 minutes, monitored by SpaceX from Hawthorne, California.
During Dragon's approximately 7-hour, 50-minute flight, SpaceX will monitor a series of automatic spacecraft maneuvers from its mission control center in Hawthorne, California.
- The crew comprises NASA's Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA's Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos' Sergey Teteryatnikov.
carrying NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov
- Hatch opening to the Harmony module is planned for around 8:45 p.m.
before opening the hatch to the station's Harmony module around 8:45 p.m.
- Research includes stem cell-derived tissues and a mostly autonomous plant growth system.
The crew also will explore crop production through a new, mostly autonomous plant growth system and test how plants grow outside dedicated facilities.