Update 11:19 p.m. EDT April 27: Commander Kjell Lindgren, pilot Robert Hines, geologist-astronaut Jessica Watkins and European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti docked at the International Space Station at 7:37 p.m. EDT, CBS News reported. That was 15 hours, 44 minutes after blastoff from the Kennedy Space Center. The crew was welcomed on board by the ISS crew a few hours later.
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket and new Dragon Freedom capsule will send astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Bob Hines, Jessica Watkins and Samantha Cristoforetti to the space station for the six-month mission.
The spacecraft is set to dock at the space station shortly after 8 p.m. EDT Wednesday, NASA said in a news release.
The mission marks “the fourth crew rotation to fly on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and Falcon 9 rocket, and the fifth SpaceX flight with NASA astronauts ... as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program,” the release added.
SpaceX said the astronauts “will conduct over 200 science experiments in areas such as materials science, health technologies and plant science to prepare for human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit and benefit life on Earth.”
Wednesday’s launch came less than two days after SpaceX’s Axiom Space’s Ax-1 crew splashed down Monday afternoon near Jacksonville, completing the two-week, all-private mission.
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Photos: NASA, SpaceX launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Robert Hines, and Jessica Watkins, and European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti on the Crew Dragon spacecraft begin a six-month expedition on the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren, Robert Hines, and Jessica Watkins, and European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti on the Crew Dragon spacecraft begin a six-month expedition on the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station Photographers record a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket as it lifts off in this time exposure from Launch Complex 39-A Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on SpaceX's Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station SpaceX Crew-4 astronauts, from left, pilot Bob Hines, mission specialist Jessica Watkins, commander Kjell Lindgren, and European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, of Italy, wave as they leave the Operations and Checkout Building for a trip to Launch Complex 39-A Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The four astronauts will fly to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station Members of the SpaceX Crew-4 mission, from left, pilot Bob Hines, commander, Kjell Lindgren, mission specialist Jessica Watkins, and mission specialist European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, of Italy, leave the Operations and Checkout building for a trip to Launch Pad 39-A and a planned liftoff Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The four astronauts will fly to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren waves as he leaves the Operations and Checkout Building for a trip to Launch Complex 39-A Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on SpaceX's Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station A SpaceX Falcon rocket sits on Launch Complex 39A Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts are scheduled to fly on SpaceX's mission to the International Space Station Wednesday morning. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station A SpaceX Falcon rocket sits on Launch Complex 39A Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts are scheduled to fly on SpaceX's mission to the International Space Station Wednesday morning. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station A SpaceX Falcon rocket sits on Launch Complex 39A Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts are scheduled fly on SpaceX's mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station Photographers set up remote cameras near a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at Launch Complex 39A Tuesday, April 26, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts are scheduled to fly on SpaceX's mission to the International Space Station Wednesday morning. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station NASA astronaut Bob Hines makes a hand gesture to family members after leaving the Operations and Checkout building and a trip to Launch Complex 39-A Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on SpaceX's Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, of Italy, blows a kiss to family members as she leaves the Operations and Checkout Building for a trip to Launch Pad 39-A Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on SpaceX's Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photos: NASA, SpaceX to launch Crew-4 mission to International Space Station NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren smiles as he talks to family members after leaving the Operations and Checkout Building for a trip to Launch Complex 39-A Wednesday, April 27, 2022, at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts will fly on SpaceX's Crew-4 mission to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
