NASA and SpaceX successfully launched the next ISS crew-rotation mission, Crew-10. The 10th operational crewed mission under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 and Crew Dragon Endurance is carrying a crew of four NASA, JAXA, and Roscosmos astronauts to the orbiting laboratory for a six-month stay as part of Expedition 72/73.
Falcon 9 lifted off from LC-39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, March 14, at 7:03 PM EDT (23:03 UTC) after a scrub on Wednesday. The March 12 launch attempt was scrubbed at approximately T-44:00 minutes after teams noted an issue with the hydraulics on ground support systems at LC-39A. SpaceX closeout crews returned to the pad following the scrub to safely assist the four astronauts in egressing Endurance.
Following launch and stage separation, the first stage booster returned to land safely at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station while the second stage sends Endurance and its crew continued on a trajectory to send the Crew Dragon to a rendezvous with the ISS.