The SpaceX Crew-1 spacecraft arrived at the International Space Station on Nov. 16, 2020 with NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins, Victor Glover, Shannon Walker, and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi. Their arrival continues two decades of work by astronauts from around the world living and working aboard the orbiting laboratory.
The skies over Florida’s Space Coast lit up as a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocketed from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center sending four astronauts to the International Space Station. After they arrive, the orbiting laboratory will be staffed for the first time by seven astronauts and cosmonauts increasing the amount of time available for research and additional opportunities for discoveries.
The upcoming Crew 1 mission not only marks the first operational flight of the SpaceX Crew Dragon, the four astronauts aboard will – for the first time — bring the International Space Station’s staffing from six to seven. Launch to the orbiting laboratory is set to take place at 7:49 p.m. EST on Nov. 14, 2020.