March 28, 2024

NASA, ESA Assign Astronauts to Space Station Mission on SpaceX Crew Dragon

In this illustration, a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft approaches the International Space Station for docking. Credit: NASA/SpaceX
NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) have actually chosen two astronauts to introduce on NASAs SpaceX Crew-7 mission to the International Space Station.
NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli and ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen will serve as spacecraft commander and pilot, respectively, for the mission. Two objective specialists will be announced later on, following review by NASA and its worldwide partners.
The mission is anticipated to release no earlier than 2023 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Moghbeli, Mogensen, and the extra objective professionals will sign up with an expedition team aboard the area station.

This will be the very first spaceflight for Moghbeli, who ended up being a NASA astronaut in 2017. This will be Mogensens second journey to the area station as a veteran of the ESA 10-day Iriss objective in 2015, for which he served as a flight engineer. Mogensen has logged 9 days, 20 hours, and 9 minutes in area. In 2015, Mogensen ended up being the very first Danish individual to go to area and currently is serving as the European astronaut liaison officer to NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston.

ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen and NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli. Credit: NASA
This will be the very first spaceflight for Moghbeli, who became a NASA astronaut in 2017. As an AH-1W Super Cobra pilot and Marine Corps test pilot, she has flown more than 150 objectives accruing 2,000 hours of flight time in more than 25 various airplane. At the time of her selection as an astronaut, Moghbeli was testing H-1 helicopters and serving as the quality guarantee and avionics officer for VMX-1.
Mogensen has actually logged 9 days, 20 hours, and 9 minutes in area. In 2015, Mogensen became the very first Danish individual to go to area and presently is serving as the European astronaut liaison officer to NASAs Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASAs Commercial Crew Program deals with the U.S. aerospace industry to provide safe, trusted, and affordable transport to and from the International Space Station on American-made rockets and spacecraft launching from American soil.
For more than 21 years, people have lived and worked constantly aboard the International Space Station, advancing clinical knowledge and demonstrating brand-new innovations, making research study advancements not possible on Earth. As an international endeavor, 253 people from 19 nations have actually gone to the unique microgravity lab that has actually hosted more than 3,000 research study and educational investigations from researchers in 109 countries and locations.
The station is a vital testbed for NASA to comprehend and conquer the difficulties of long-duration spaceflight and to expand commercial opportunities in low-Earth orbit. As commercial companies focus on supplying human space transportation services and establishing a robust low-Earth orbit economy, NASA is totally free to concentrate on building spacecraft and rockets for deep space objectives to the Moon and Mars.