A SpaceX rocket has sent a new crew to the space station, which will arrive there on Sunday, August 27.
Four astronauts from four countries flew on the Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS) on the morning of Saturday, August 26. The ship was launched into space by a Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX, which also owns the ship. This mission is called Crew-7 and its crew consists of four astronauts from four countries. According to the plan, on Sunday, August 27, the astronauts will arrive at the orbital station, where they will spend six months, CNN reports.
The Crew-7 mission included Jasmine Mogbeli from the United States, Andreas Mogensen from Denmark, Satoshi Furukawa from Japan, and Konstantin Borisov from Russia.
After reaching near-Earth space, the Crew Dragon spacecraft successfully separated from the launch vehicle, started its engines and began its flight to the ISS, which is located at an altitude of approximately 420 km above the Earth. At approximately 15:40 Kyiv time, or possibly a little earlier, on August 27, the spacecraft is expected to successfully dock with the orbital station.
The four astronauts who will arrive on the ISS will join seven other long-term crew members who have been in space for a long time. The new crew will take over control of the ISS within 5 days.
SpaceX started sending astronauts to the ISS back in 2020, but the Crew-7 mission is unique in that it is the first time such a diverse crew has gone into space aboard a spacecraft.
During their stay in space, four astronauts will conduct various scientific studies on the station for about 190 days. For example, they will study the risks of spreading bacteria and fungi during manned space missions. The astronauts will conduct an experiment to analyze whether it is possible to eject microorganisms from the ventilation holes of the orbital station into space.
The astronauts will also study sleep in microgravity and how it differs from sleep on Earth. Another study will be aimed at finding the best ways to process urine and sweat (yes, astronauts do it) used for drinking and hygiene procedures on the ISS.
Jasmine Mogbeli made her first space flight, Andreas Mogensen flew for the second time, as did Satoshi Furukawa. For the Russian Borisov, this is his first flight.
Starting in 2022, despite the war in Ukraine and the confrontation between the United States and Russia, NASA and Roscosmos signed an agreement that allows astronauts from these countries to fly to the ISS on both American and Russian spacecraft. So far, only SpaceX’s Crew Dragon and Russia’s Soyuz can deliver astronauts to the ISS.
The previous crew of the station from the Crew-6 mission is due to return back to Earth in the coming days on the Crew Dragon spacecraft.
