NASA launched the Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, February 13, 2026, to replace a team that returned to Earth approximately a month earlier than scheduled due to a crew member’s illness.
Following two weather-related delays earlier this week, the space agency and SpaceX successfully launched the mission from the Space Force Station at Cape Canaveral, initiating its journey to the orbiting laboratory. The launch underscores the ongoing collaboration between NASA and private space companies in maintaining a continuous human presence in space.
The SpaceX Dragon capsule carries a crew of four: Americans Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, French astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.
NASA stated that the Dragon capsule is expected to dock with the ISS at 3:15 PM EST (8:15 PM GMT) on Saturday, February 14, 2026. This successful launch is a key component of continued operations on the ISS, a vital platform for scientific research in microgravity.
The Crew-12 mission is planned to last approximately nine months, exceeding the typical six-month duration of the NASA and SpaceX commercial program. The extended stay will allow for a more comprehensive series of experiments and observations.
The incoming crew will replace the members of Crew-11 – Americans Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov – who returned to Earth on January 14, 2026, following the first medical evacuation in the history of the ISS after one of its members experienced a health issue.
NASA has not disclosed the identity of the affected crew member to protect their medical privacy.
Since their departure, the station has been operating with a reduced crew consisting of American astronaut Christopher Williams and Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev, who have continued ongoing operations and scientific experiments.
NASA reported today that Williams is currently preparing the equipment the Crew-12 team will utilize during their long-duration research mission on the station. He is also loading waste and obsolete equipment into JAXA’s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) HTV-X1 cargo spacecraft, which is scheduled to conclude its mission at the orbital outpost in March.
With information from EFE
