NASA and SpaceX lit up the skies on Friday with the Crew-11 mission, launching a four-member team to the International Space Station (ISS) from Kennedy Space Center at 11:43 a.m. ET. This exciting launch marks another chapter in space exploration! 🚀
The crew comprises NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov. They are aboard the SpaceX Dragon capsule named Endeavor, which has already completed four NASA missions and one private mission.
During their six-month stay, the team will conduct groundbreaking experiments. They will simulate lunar landing scenarios near the lunar South Pole as part of NASA's Artemis program, using handheld controllers and multiple display screens to test how shifts in gravity affect spacecraft piloting. Additionally, they will study plant cell division, explore the effects of microgravity on bacteria-killing viruses, and experiment with boosting human stem cell production and on-demand nutrient generation.
For a short period, the ISS will host 11 crew members as Crew-11 joins the existing team of NASA astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, and Jonny Kim, along with JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi and Roscosmos cosmonauts Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, and Alexey Zubritsky. Meanwhile, Crew-10 is preparing for their return to Earth after the handover period.
Since its continuous operation beginning in 2000, the ISS has been a vital test bed for research that supports deeper space exploration, including future journeys to Mars. As the station gears up for decommissioning after 2030—with its orbit gradually lowered until it breaks up over Point Nemo—missions like Crew-11 are a stellar reminder that the quest for discovery in space is ever-evolving and full of surprises.
Reference(s):
NASA and SpaceX launch Crew-11 to International Space Station
cgtn.com
