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Successful Crew-10 launch Friday
FOX 13 Chief Political Reporter Craig Patrick reports live from Cape Canaveral on NASA and SpaceX's successful Friday night launch of four Crew-10 astronauts to the International Space Station.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA and SpaceX launched four Crew-10 astronauts to the International Space Station on Friday night from Cape Canaveral.
Wednesday night's launch was scrubbed due to a hydraulic issue with a clamp arm attached to the transporter erector system, officials said. But, Wednesday's issues didn't stop the crew from lifting off to the space station Friday evening. The crew is now heading to the ISS, expected to reach their destination Saturday evening.
Starliner astronauts still on the ISS
The backstory:
Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams took an eight-day test flight on June 5, 2024, that turned into a nine-month stay in space. A series of bugs and leaks on Boeing’s Starliner convinced NASA to send it back to Earth without a crew, leaving Wilmore and Williams behind.
"Butch and Suni have taken everything that’s been thrown at them and the way they have responded to that has been an example," said NASA Astronaut Nick Hague.
They said they were prepared to stay on the space station if the Starliner test flight did not go as planned.
What they're saying:
"Eventually, we want to go home, because we left our families a little while ago, but we have a lot to do while we're up here, and we have got to get all that stuff done before we go home," Williams said.
Who will be on the Crew-10 mission?
Dig deeper:
The Crew-10 team includes Commander Anne McClain and Pilot Nicole Ayers of NASA, Mission Specialist Kirill Peskov of Russia’s Roscosmos, and Mission Specialist Takuya Onishi of Japan’s Aerospace Exploration Agency.
The work on the International Space Station includes research to improve human health, enhance building materials, and help NASA prepare for the planned Artemis missions to send astronauts back to the moon.
READ: NASA astronauts still stranded in space take first spacewalk together
Why you should care:
The Crew-10's launch was scheduled for take off at a potential fork in the road for NASA. The Trump administration is scrutinizing contracts and salaries and could order significant changes.
President Donald Trump and his advisor and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk have expressed particular interest in future missions to Mars. Artemis is designed to be a glide path from the moon to Mars but could be subject to change pending further review by the Trump administration.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from previous reports by FOX 13 as well as coverage of the Crew-10 mission launch.
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