On March 4, 2024, at 2:28 a.m. EST, SpaceX docked the Dragon spacecraft at the International Space Station complex with the Crew-8 astronauts. This major milestone was achieved when the station was 260 statute miles over Newfoundland.
This mission liftoff from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida using the SpaceX Falcon 9 reusable rocket. The launch took place at 10:53 p.m. EST.
The meet the space station, Dragon has performed a series of burns 250 miles above Earth.
The Crew-8 team includes NASA astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michale Barratt, and Jeanette Epps, as well as Roscosmos cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin.
After linking to the Harmony module, the Crew-8 will next perform standard leak checks and pressurization between the Dragon and the Space Station. This will prepare the spacecraft for hatch opening at around 4:13 a.m. EST.
Throughout their time at the Space Station, the crew will conduct more than 200 scientific experiments and deliver technologies for research purposes. These will also help to research about human health for distant missions from Earth to other planets and beyond.
SpaceX says it has now launched 50 astronauts into space with this new launch.
Image Credit: SpaceX