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NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission will fly four crew members to the ISS.
Summary
NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 will launch four crew members from Cape Canaveral to the International Space Station for an eight-month mission aboard a reused Dragon spacecraft named Freedom to conduct science, technology demonstrations, and maintenance.
Content
NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission will send four crew members to the International Space Station for an eight-month stay. The crew includes NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev. They are scheduled to launch from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft named Freedom. The mission will support science, technology demonstrations, and routine maintenance that contribute to long-duration exploration efforts.
Key details:
- Launch site and vehicle: Liftoff is planned from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft named Freedom. The Dragon previously flew on Crew-4, Crew-9, and private Axiom missions.
- Crew and roles: Jessica Meir will serve as commander and Jack Hathaway as pilot; Sophie Adenot and Andrey Fedyaev will serve as mission specialists.
- Mission goals: The eight-month mission will include research and technology demonstrations such as studies of pneumonia-causing bacteria, on-demand intravenous fluid generation, automated plant health monitoring, plant–microbe interaction experiments, and investigations of how physical characteristics may affect blood flow in microgravity.
- Preflight and operations: Teams are preparing a Falcon 9 booster for a second flight and will complete system checkouts, mate Dragon to Falcon 9, conduct a dry dress rehearsal with the crew, and perform an integrated static fire test before launch. Dragon is designed to dock autonomously to the station's Harmony module, with manual control available if needed.
Summary:
Crew-12 will join the Expedition 74 crew aboard the International Space Station and carry out planned science and maintenance tasks that contribute to understanding long-duration spaceflight and enable future exploration. Preflight milestones remain underway, including booster preparation, spacecraft mating, a crew dry dress rehearsal, and a static fire test before liftoff.
