A SpaceX mission is set to launch this Saturday, carrying NASA astronaut Nick Hague and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Gorbunov to the International Space Station (ISS). The Falcon 9 rocket will lift off at 1:17 pm from Cape Canaveral, using a new launch pad for its first crewed mission.
This mission also aims to bring back two American astronauts, Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been stuck on the ISS for months. They were originally sent in June on an eight-day mission aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. However, due to propulsion issues, NASA decided to return the Starliner to Earth without the crew, leaving Wilmore and Williams to extend their stay to eight months.
The launch of SpaceX Crew-9 was delayed from mid-August to late September to give more time for evaluating the Starliner. It was postponed again due to Hurricane Helene. Crew-9 is expected to dock with the ISS on Sunday, and after a short handover, the Crew-8 team will return to Earth.
Nick Hague and Alexander Gorbunov will stay on the ISS for five months, during which they will carry out about 200 scientific experiments. Meanwhile, Wilmore and Williams will return home after their unexpectedly extended mission.
