In a stunning liftoff from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, four space travelers blasted off on a trip to the International Space Station (ISS) on top of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The crew-10, that flew at 19:03 et features NASA astronauts anne mcclain and nichole ayers, jaxa astronaut takuya onishi and russian cosmonaut kirill peskov. Their successful liftoff comes after an earlier one was scrubbed.
“This mission is a shining example of what humankind can accomplish when we work together. Go Crew-10,” Ayers stated before launch, emphasizing that international space exploration requires teamwork.
This mission is getting extra attention, not only because of its regular crew rotation but also because it paves the way for one of the most anticipated events in the queue: the return of NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore. Scheduled for a short-term visit, Williams and Wilmore have found themselves in orbit for an unplanned nine months after technical difficulties surfaced with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft. 
The Crew-10 astronauts are predicted to arrive at the ISS within 28 hours, starting a turn down phase before the departure of Williams, Wilmore, NASA’s Nick Hague and Russia Cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov. The couple’s return flight, scheduled for March 19 on a SpaceX Dragon capsule, will mark the end of their long stay in space.
This mission is a key milestone in the history of space collaboration globally, highlighting the importance – this is a soft-block – of adaptability, of resilience in human spaceflight.
