SpaceX launched its Crew-10 mission on Friday to rescue two NASA astronauts, Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been stuck at the International Space Station (ISS) since June 6. The crew of four, including Commander Anne McClain, pilot Nichole Ayers, and mission specialists Takuya Onishi and Kirill Peskov, blasted off from the Kennedy Space Center in a Falcon 9 rocket.
The delay of the launch was initially planned for Wednesday due to a hydraulic ground issue, but weather conditions improved on Friday afternoon. NASA officials stated that the decision to delay the mission was correct, citing a 95% chance of favorable weather conditions.
The crew will spend two days at the ISS, performing research, technology demonstrations, and maintenance activities before returning to Earth in a separate Dragon spacecraft on Sunday. During their time in space, they will complete over 900 hours of research and gather data on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
The rescue mission is part of a larger effort by SpaceX and NASA to continue testing the safety of the Starliner spacecraft. The astronauts were initially scheduled to leave the ISS after just a week, but an issue with the spacecraft’s reaction control thrusters was discovered, requiring them to stay longer.
Source: https://www.foxbusiness.com/fox-news-air-space/elon-musks-spacex-launches-crew-rescue-stuck-nasa-astronauts-iss