SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

International Space Station Program Manager Joel Montalbano participates in a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

One of the Tesla Model X cars that will carry NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 to Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A is photographed at the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building on Oct. 5, 2022. The license plate tag reads “blast off.” NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Josh Cassada, pilot; Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist; and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, mission specialist, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT.

Inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA astronauts Josh Cassada (left) and Nicole Mann don their spacesuits ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch on Oct. 5, 2022. Cassada and Mann, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, soars upward after lifting off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, left, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata are seated inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. Kikina and Wakata, along with NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, will launch to the International Space Station on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, soars upward after lifting off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Kathy Lueders, associate administrator for NASA’s Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, participates in a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Hiroshi Sasaki, vice president and director general of JAXA’s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Human Spaceflight Technology Directorate, participates in a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 say goodbye to friends and family after exiting the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. From left are Mission Specialists Anna Kikina, Roscosmos cosmonaut, and Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Josh Cassada, pilot. They will board two Tesla vehicles for the trip to Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A, where they will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, soars upward after lifting off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 is photographed inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch on Oct. 5, 2022. From left are Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist; NASA astronauts Josh Cassada, pilot, and Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander; and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, mission specialist. The crew will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

A banner displaying NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission patch and crew names is photographed above the double doors of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Josh Cassada, pilot; Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist; and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, mission specialist, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, pilot, is shown in his SpaceX spacesuit ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch on Oct. 5, 2022. Cassada, along with NASA astronaut Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

A postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission is held inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. Participants are, from left: Megan Cruz, moderator, NASA Communications; Kathy Lueders, associate administrator, Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters; Steve Stich, manager, Commercial Crew Program, Kennedy; Joel Montalbano, manager, International Space Station, Johnson Space Center; Sarah Walker, director, Dragon Mission Management, SpaceX; Hiroshi Sasaki, vice president and director general, JAXA’s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Human Spaceflight Technology Directorate; and Sergei Krikalev, executive director, Human Space Flight Programs, Roscosmos. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist, is seated inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. Kikina, along with NASA astronauts Josh Cassada, pilot, and Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, mission specialist, will launch to the International Space Station on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA astronaut Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, is seated inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. Mann, along with NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, pilot, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina will launch to the International Space Station on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 walks out of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. In front are NASA astronauts Josh Cassada (left) and Nicole Mann, and behind them are Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina (left) and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata. They will board two Tesla vehicles for the trip to Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A, where they will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT.

Inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA astronaut Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, is shown in her SpaceX spacesuit ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch on Oct. 5, 2022. Mann, along with NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, pilot, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

NASA Communications’ Megan Cruz moderates a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 enters the elevator inside the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. From left are JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Koichi Wakata, mission specialist; NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Josh Cassada, pilot; and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist. The crew will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA astronaut Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, is seated inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. Mann, along with NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, pilot, and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina will launch to the International Space Station on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA astronaut Josh Cassada, left, is seated inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. To his right is NASA astronaut Nicole Mann. Cassada and Mann, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata will launch to the International Space Station on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich participates in a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Sarah Walker, director of Dragon Mission Management at SpaceX, participates in a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

Inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina (left) and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata are photographed in their spacesuits ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch on Oct. 5, 2022. Kikina and Wakata, along with NASA astronauts Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 say goodbye to friends and family after exiting the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. From left are Mission Specialists Anna Kikina, Roscosmos cosmonaut, and Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Josh Cassada, pilot. They will board two Tesla vehicles for the trip to Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A, where they will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Sergei Krikalev, executive director of Human Space Flight Programs with Roscosmos, participates in a postlaunch news conference for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 mission inside the News Auditorium at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance is carrying NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

Inside the crew suit-up room in the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, mission specialist, is shown in his SpaceX spacesuit ahead of the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch on Oct. 5, 2022. Wakata, along with NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander, and Josh Cassada, pilot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist, will launch to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon Endurance spacecraft lifted off at noon EDT from Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, with the Dragon Endurance spacecraft atop, soars upward after lifting off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022, on the agency’s SpaceX Crew-5 launch. Inside Endurance are NASA astronauts Nicole Mann, commander; Josh Cassada, pilot; and Mission Specialists Koichi Wakata, of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina. The crew is heading to the International Space Station for a science expedition mission as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. Liftoff occurred at noon EDT.

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-5 waves after walking out of the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Oct. 5, 2022. From left are Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina, mission specialist; NASA astronauts Josh Cassada, pilot; and Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander; and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Koichi Wakata, mission specialist. They will board two Tesla vehicles for the trip to Kennedy’s Launch Complex 39A, where they will launch to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX’s Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a science expedition mission as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off at noon EDT.