CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Four astronauts are set to launch to the International Space Station on Thursday as part of NASA and SpaceX’s Crew-13 mission. Liftoff is scheduled for no earlier than 11:10 a.m. from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The U.S. Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron forecasts a 40% chance of favorable launch conditions, with a backup opportunity on Friday at 10:47 a.m.
NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney will act as spacecraft commander and pilot, alongside Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, who will serve as mission specialists.
The crew is expected to join the space station’s Expedition 75 team for approximately six months, focusing on research, technology demonstrations, and maintenance aboard the orbiting laboratory. Studies will address heart disease, Parkinson’s disease, medical research using stem-cell-derived tissues, crop production, and astronaut health monitoring.
Crew-13 marks SpaceX’s 13th crew rotation mission to the space station under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Support teams are finalizing Dragon preflight milestones and preparing the Falcon 9 booster for its third flight. The crew will travel aboard the Dragon spacecraft named Grace, which previously supported the Axiom Mission 4 in summer 2025.
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