NASA and SpaceX are preparing for the Crew-13 mission, scheduled to launch no earlier than 11:10 a.m. EDT on October 1 from Cape Canaveral. The mission will transport four astronauts to the International Space Station to join the Expedition 75 crew for a long-duration stay.
The crew includes commander Jessica Watkins, pilot Luke Delaney, and mission specialists Joshua Kutryk from the Canadian Space Agency and Sergey Teteryatnikov from Roscosmos. They will fly aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft named Grace, which previously supported the Axiom Mission 4.
The mission objectives focus on scientific research, including studies on human stem-cell derived tissues for heart and Parkinson’s disease treatment, crop production for future deep-space travel, and blood flow analysis. The team will also test new diagnostic medical equipment.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket booster will be on its third flight for this mission. Following launch, the Dragon spacecraft will travel at approximately 17,500 mph before docking at the Harmony module. Crew-13 will also oversee the arrival of two commercial resupply missions.
