en.Wedoany.com Reported - NASA and SpaceX's Crew-13 crewed mission is proceeding as planned. Mission managers and astronauts told reporters on August 3 that the flight is expected to lift off no earlier than September 12 from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The four crew members will become the second crew to fly aboard the Dragon spacecraft "Grace," docking with the International Space Station the following day to begin a seven-month stay as members of Expedition 75/76.
Crew-13 Commander Jessica Watkins is the only member of the mission with prior spaceflight experience and will become the first active NASA astronaut to fly on Dragon twice. Her crewmates include NASA Pilot Luke Delaney, Canadian Space Agency Mission Specialist Josh Kutryk, and Roscosmos Mission Specialist Sergey Teteryatnikov. Kutryk will be the fourth Canadian to serve on the International Space Station and the second this year, following Jeremy Hansen, who completed a lunar mission with the Artemis II crew in April.
Watkins said the mission has a packed schedule, including extensive station interior and exterior maintenance, planned spacewalks, visiting vehicle capture and stowage, scientific experiments, and public outreach. On the research front, the crew will use human stem cell-derived tissues to explore treatments for heart disease and Parkinson's disease, conduct crop production trials for long-duration deep-space missions, analyze blood flow abnormalities during long missions, and test new diagnostic medical devices for health monitoring.
Joel Montalbano, NASA's deputy associate administrator for human spaceflight, said every crewed mission is an opportunity to deepen understanding of low Earth orbit, expand international partnerships, and demonstrate the potential of human spaceflight in low Earth orbit.
Pre-launch preparations are still being finalized. Dana Weigel, NASA's low Earth orbit program manager, said final integration of the Dragon spacecraft is complete, with the capsule stacked on the trunk last week. Falcon 9 booster refurbishment, using a booster previously flown on the Crew-12 mission, will begin this month, with no significant issues identified so far.
On August 7, the four astronauts will try on SpaceX's next-generation Rev. 3 spacesuits for the first time—a model with improved donning and doffing designs and adjustments for spinal growth in orbit. They will also board "Grace" for the first time to familiarize themselves with the spacecraft. "Grace" has been fitted with new metallic "mud flaps" for its Draco escape engines, replacing earlier carbon fiber components. In the event of an emergency evacuation before launch, the crew will use a SpaceX-operated Tesla Cybertruck to leave the pad for the first time. Richard Jones, deputy manager of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, said all required certifications and tests have been completed to meet the requirements for starting the vehicle with gloves on and crew escape in spacesuits.
During the mission, the Crew-13 crew will also share time with Russian Soyuz crews departing and arriving at the International Space Station. Those Soyuz crew members will launch and land alongside members of Delaney's astronaut candidate class, "The Flies" (selected in 2021). Delaney said he is pleased they will encounter classmate Anil Menon on station, with Deniz Burnham following later, and joked that he hopes the mission runs late so he can see three classmates in a row.
Kutryk noted that growing up on a cattle farm in Canada, such a mission makes him appreciate the vast team support behind complex engineering. His third child is expected to be born around the midpoint of the mission, a timing he acknowledged is beyond his control. He mentioned that NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Randy Bresnik both welcomed children during their stays on the International Space Station, and said his family and a large support network are fully prepared.
