SpaceX Launches 4 Astronauts to International Space Station for NASA's Crew-8 Mission

Four astronauts are heading to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX rocket. They are part of NASA's Crew-8 mission.

SpaceX Launched Astronauts for NASA's Crew-8 Mission

On Sunday (March 3), SpaceX Falcon 9 rocketed and lifted off at 10:53 p.m. EST tonight (0353 GMT on March 4) from Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Four astronauts were aboard the rocket heading to the International Space Station -- NASA's Matthew Dominick (commander), Michael Barratt (pilot), Jeanette Epps (mission specialist), and mission specialist Alexander Grebenkin of Russia's space agency Roscosmos. Aside from Barratt, who is making his third, it's the first spaceflight for the crew members.

After launch, the two stages of the rocket separated 2.5 minutes later. The first stage landed successfully at Cape Canaveral about five minutes later, marking the company's 204th straight rocket touchdown. The mission's Crew Dragon spacecraft, Endeavor, was sent into low Earth orbit (LEO) by the Falcon 9's upper stage 12 minutes and 15 seconds after liftoff.

"Hey, Earth! Just to let you know, it's kind of like a rollercoaster ride with a bunch of really excited teenagers," Barratt told mission control after Endeavour deployed into LEO. "Thanks so much to our friends and colleagues at SpaceX for the awesome ride. It's great to be back in space again!"

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More About Crew-8 Mission

Crew-8 is the eighth crew rotation mission with SpaceX to the International Space Stations and the ninth human spaceflight of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. The launch marked the sixth time SpaceX has used an unflown rocket in a crewed launch. Additionally, it was the Falcon 9 rocket's first flight.

After entering orbit, a sequence of automated maneuvers will direct Dragon to the forward-facing port of the station's Harmony module. The crew and SpaceX mission control in Hawthorne, California, will monitor these moves. Although the spaceship is meant to dock independently, the crew can take over and manually pilot if needed.

Following docking, the seven-person Expedition 70 crew will greet Crew-8 inside the station, and they will spend several days doing handover exercises with the astronauts of the Crew-7 mission who are leaving the ISS. Following a period of handover, astronauts from NASA, JAXA, the European Space Agency, and Roscosmos, including cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Crew-7, will undock from the space station and splash down off the coast of Florida.

To assist civilization on Earth and prepare for human exploration beyond low Earth orbit, Crew-8 will carry out new scientific research. Research projects include investigating the effects of microgravity and UV radiation on plants at the cellular level, developing organoid models of degenerative diseases using stem cells, and determining whether or not wearing pressure cuffs on the legs could prevent fluid shifts and lessen health issues in astronauts. These are only a handful of the over 200 scientific investigations and technological displays occurring as part of their objective.

Crew-8 will witness the arrival of the SpaceX Dragon and the Roscosmos Progress cargo spacecraft while they are in orbit. Along with the agency's Boeing Crew Flight Test crew, the first cargo flight of Sierra Space's Dream Chaser is anticipated to take place on Crew-8. During their visit, a Soyuz spacecraft containing NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson and three additional crew members will launch, and the Soyuz carrying NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara will return to Earth.

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