Jessica Watkins leads record-fast US trip to the space station

Four astronauts reached the International Space Station on 1 October after the fastest journey there by a US spacecraft. Their commander, NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins, also became the first Black woman to lead a crew to orbit.

The SpaceX Dragon capsule docked seven hours and 55 minutes after launching from Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA, that was the shortest launch-to-docking time for an American spacecraft in the station’s history.

The station’s position at liftoff made the quick journey possible. By comparison, the previous crew took more than 30 hours to arrive in February. The overall record remains with Russia: a Soyuz capsule reached the station in about three hours and 10 minutes in September 2024.

Watkins, a geologist who previously worked on NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover, is returning to the station after a lengthy stay in 2022. Her three crewmates are all newcomers to space: NASA’s Luke Delaney, Canada’s Joshua Kutryk and Russia’s Sergey Teteryatnikov.

Their launch followed a three-week delay to repair a leak in the capsule. Now aboard the orbiting laboratory, the four are due to stay for about six months, replacing a crew that has been living there since February.