NASA Crew-12 Mission: Astronauts Launch to the International Space Station
Four astronauts successfully launched to the International Space Station (ISS) on February 13, 2026. The NASA Crew-12 mission took off from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida atop SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket at 3:46 pm IST. The spacecraft is expected to reach the ISS around 1 am IST on February 15 and will return after eight months.
The mission faced delays due to unfavorable weather conditions but finally lifted off with the Falcon 9 rocket booster successfully landing at Landing Zone 40 at Cape Canaveral, SpaceX's newest recovery site. The crew comprises NASA's Jessica Meir as the commander, Jack Hathaway as the pilot, Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev as a specialist, and French native Sophie Adenot as a specialist representing the European Space Agency.
Jessica Meir, with 205 days of space experience, is on her second spaceflight mission, while Andrey Fedyaev, with 186 days of spaceflight experience from the Crew-6 mission in 2023, is also part of the crew. Sophie Adenot is on her debut mission along with Meir. The four astronauts will join the Expedition 74 crew currently managing station operations on the ISS.
In conclusion, the successful launch of the Crew-12 mission marks another milestone in space exploration as the astronauts embark on their mission to the International Space Station for an extended stay before returning to Earth.