SpaceX is not waiting around to host its next passenger mission. On Thursday, NASA announced its next crewed mission to the International Space Station will launch no earlier than 2:43 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday, October 30. The Crew-3 mission will be SpaceX’s fourth crewed mission for NASA, and its fifth crewed mission overall after its successful Inspiration4 civilian flight last month.
The plans show SpaceX is not planning to stand still. The Inspiration4 mission brought newfound attention to the company, thanks in part to a five-part Netflix documentary that released its final episode on Thursday.
Like the Inspiration4 mission, which sent up four people who had never been to space before, the Crew-3 mission will also send up three astronauts for their first time. They’ll travel alongside a two-time veteran.
Critically, however, the Crew-3 team is not a civilian team like Inspiration4. It consists of three NASA astronauts and one European Space Agency astronaut.
As SpaceX prepares for its next mission, it’s a reminder of why the Crew Dragon capsule exists in the first place. NASA employed the company, alongside Boeing, to build astronaut-carrying capsules so it could launch crewed missions from the United States again.
It’s missions like Crew-3 that are laying the foundation for SpaceX and others to expand access to spaceflight further than ever before.
Here’s everything you need to know about the SpaceX Crew-3 mission, from launch date and time to the astronauts on board and what comes next.
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SpaceX Crew-3 launch date, time, and schedule
The Crew-3 mission will launch no earlier than 2:43 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday, October 30.
It will take off using a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The agency also has a backup launch window of 2:21 a.m. on Sunday, October 31.
Part of SpaceX’s long-term goals is to reduce the costs of spaceflight by landing and reusing rocket boosters, and Crew-3 is no exception. NASA has confirmed the mission will use Falcon 9 booster B1067.
This booster previously flew on NASA’s 22nd Commercial Resupply Services mission on June 3, which used a cargo Dragon capsule to transport supplies to the ISS.
The crew will arrive at the ISS following a journey of around 22 hours. There will be a short overlap with the Crew-2 crew, which launched for the ISS on April 23. The four-person Crew-2 team will return early-to-mid November.
Because of this, it is likely that Crew-3 will fly in a new Crew Dragon capsule. SpaceX has flown two capsules in the past: one is currently docked to the ISS, and the other only returned last month from the Inspiration4 mission.
In November 2020, SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell confirmed in an interview that the company was producing three further Crew Dragon capsules as she spoke, for a total of five.
NASA states that the Crew-3 team will live and work as part of “what is expected to be a seven-member crew.” They are expected to spend around six months at the space station before they return to Earth in the Crew Dragon capsule.
SpaceX Crew-3 astronauts: Who’s on the ship?
The mission will send up four crew members:
- NASA astronaut Raja Chari as mission commander
- NASA astronaut Tom Marshburn as a pilot
- NASA astronaut Kayla Barron as a mission specialist
- ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Matthias Maurer, the second ESA astronaut and third non-NASA astronaut to fly with SpaceX
Chari, Barron, and Maurer have all never flown to space before. This will be Marshburn’s third flight.
Who are the next SpaceX astronauts after Crew-3?
SpaceX has more lined up after Crew-3.
The company plans to collaborate with Axiom Space on a series of missions aimed at ultimately producing a new, privately-run space station. Ax-1, the first of these missions, is expected to launch no earlier than January 2022. The first mission will include:
- Michael López-Alegría, the mission commander. He’s a former NASA astronaut and now vice president of Axiom Space.
- Larry Connor, the pilot. He’s an entrepreneur from Dayton, Ohio, and has a history of racing, rafting, flying, and mountain climbing.
- Mark Pathy, who will be Canada’s 11th astronaut. He’s an investor, philanthropist, and CEO of Montreal-based investment firm Mavrik.
- Eytan Stibbe, who will be Israel’s second astronaut. He’s the director of the Vital Capital Fund, a private equity fund with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa.
After the mission, Axiom Space aims to launch further crewed missions every six months.
On Thursday, NASA also confirmed that the agency is continuing to target April 15, 2022, to launch the Crew-4 mission.
This will launch the following crew to space:
- NASA astronaut Kjell Lindgren as mission commander
- NASA astronaut Bob Hines as a pilot
- ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti, famous for being the first person to brew an espresso in space, will be a mission specialist
- A fourth crew member has yet to be determined
What about SpaceX Starship?
The Crew Dragon may not have long left before it is replaced. SpaceX is currently developing the Starship, a fully-reusable rocket designed to send up to 100 people or 100 tons to space at a time. The company is currently preparing for its first orbital flight, and a crewed mission around the Moon is scheduled for 2023.
From there, SpaceX plans to send the first humans to Mars in the mid-2020s using the Starship. The long-term goal is to build a city on Mars by 2050.
Far from a routine mission, Crew-3 could be a stepping stone to transforming humanity into a multi-planetary species.
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