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NASA–SpaceX Crew-13 Launches Four Astronauts Toward the ISS

A multinational crew lifted off from Cape Canaveral at 11:10 a.m. Eastern on October 1. The next operational milestone is docking—not simply launch.

By Virelquo Editorial Desk · Published and reviewed October 1, 2026

AI-assisted editorial illustration of a crewed rocket launch toward low Earth orbit — AI-assisted editorial illustration; not a documentary photograph.

Virelquo Key Takeaways

Crew-13 launched at 11:10 a.m. Eastern with four astronauts representing NASA, the Canadian Space Agency and Roscosmos.
The flight is scheduled to reach the International Space Station in roughly eight hours, which means launch success and docking success are separate milestones.
The crew is beginning a long-duration mission centered on station operations and research.

What happened

A SpaceX Falcon 9 lifted a Dragon spacecraft from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Commander Jessica Watkins and pilot Luke Delaney of NASA are joined by Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov. Reuters and the Associated Press independently confirmed the liftoff minutes after NASA’s live coverage.

Why it matters

The mission maintains continuous staffing of the International Space Station and extends a regular U.S. crew-transport capability. It is also a multinational handoff: Crew-13 will overlap briefly with Crew-12 before the earlier crew returns to Earth.

Cross-Publisher Snapshot

NASA provides the operational timeline, crew roster and target docking sequence.

Associated Press emphasizes the four-person crew, Jessica Watkins’ command and the unusually fast planned transit.

Reuters adds the mission’s research focus and the broader continuity of ISS operations through 2030.

Virelquo analysis

The cleanest way to follow this mission is as a sequence, not a single verdict: liftoff, orbital insertion, spacecraft checkouts, rendezvous, docking, pressurization and hatch opening. At publication time, the first milestone had occurred; the later ones remained ahead. That distinction prevents scheduled events from being reported as completed events.

What to watch next

Confirmation that Dragon’s initial orbital checkouts are complete.
NASA’s real-time docking update, targeted for about 7 p.m. Eastern.
Hatch opening and the Crew-12 handover schedule.

Sources

Disclosure: Virelquo used AI-assisted tools for research organization and the accompanying illustration. An editor reviewed the facts, sourcing and wording. See Editorial Policy or submit a correction through Corrections.