CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla The International Space Station returned to full strength with Saturday’s arrival of four new astronauts to replace colleagues who bailed early because of health concerns. SpaceX delivered the U. S., French and Russian astronauts a day after launching them from Cape Canaveral. Last month’s medical evacuation was NASA’s first in 65 years of human spaceflight. One of four astronauts launched by SpaceX last summer suffered what officials described as a serious health issue, prompting their hasty return. That left only three crew members to keep the place running one American and two Russians prompting NASA to pause spacewalks and trim research. Moving in for eight to nine months are NASA’s Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, France’s Sophie Adenot and Russia’s Andrei Fedyaev. Meir, a marine biologist, and Fedyaev, a former military pilot, have lived up there before. During her first station visit in 2019, Meir took part in the first all-female spacewalk. Adenot, a military helicopter pilot, is only the second French woman to fly in space. Hathaway is a captain in the U. S. Navy. NASA has refused to divulge the identity of the astronaut who fell ill in orbit on Jan. 7 or explain what happened, citing medical privacy. The ailing astronaut and three others returned to Earth more than a month sooner than planned. They spent their first night back on Earth at the hospital before returning to Houston. The space agency said it did not alter its preflight medical checks for their replacements. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/new-astronauts-arrive-international-space-station-replace-nasas-130177190
Tag Archives: international space station
NASA cuts missions for Boeing Starliner contract, next flight will have no crew
The next trip to space for Boeing’s beleaguered Starliner spacecraft won’t have a crew on board after NASA announced changes to the commercial crew contract that also slashes the total number of missions to the International Space Station. NASA on Monday announced the update to the 2014 contract that originally called for six operational crewed flights to the station after completing both a successful uncrewed and crewed flight test. Now, the contract reduces that total to four missions, although the remaining two will be available as options. The move comes after Starliner’s last flight in June 2024, which flew to the station with two NASA astronauts for what was supposed to be as short as an eight-day stay on board. But issues with its thrusters and helium leaks on its propulsion module led to NASA opting to send the spacecraft home without a crew, who ended up having to remain on board the station and be flown home on a SpaceX Dragon instead nearly 10 months after their arrival. “After a thorough evaluation, NASA and Boeing have mutually agreed to modify the contract,” NASA posted in a press release. Instead of trying to fly with a crew, the mission Starliner-1 will be used to deliver cargo. It will also allow NASA and Boeing to sign off on the fixes implemented since the problematic crew flight test. “NASA and Boeing are continuing to rigorously test the Starliner propulsion system in preparation for two potential flights next year,” said NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich. “This modification allows NASA and Boeing to focus on safely certifying the system in 2026, execute Starliner’s first crew rotation when ready, and align our ongoing flight planning for future Starliner missions based on station’s operational needs through 2030.” That mission is targeting a launch date of no earlier than April 2026. The spacecraft will be atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 41. If all goes well, Starliner will be allowed to fly up to three crewed missions to the space station, sharing duties with SpaceX, which is currently in the midst of its 11th operational crew mission, all flown since 2020. SpaceX and Boeing originally shared the commercial crew contracts awarded in 2014, with Boeing seen originally as the more reliable choice, but Starliner ran into major issues trying to get its uncrewed flight test complete and SpaceX has sinced surged ahead. The first crewed Dragon mission to make it to the station docked in May 2020, returning orbital human spaceflight missions to the United States for the first time in nearly nine years after the end of the Space Shuttle Program in 2011.
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/11/24/nasa-cuts-missions-for-boeing-starliner-contract-next-flight-will-have-no-crew/
Astronaut prepares for a year in orbit
This week NASA will launch one of its most ambitious missions yet, sending 51-year-old astronaut Scott Kelly to the International Space Station for 12 months. That’s twice as long as his last trip to space in 2010, and a new record for an American in orbit. David Pogue of Yahoo Tech reports.
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/astronaut-prepares-for-a-year-in-orbit/
NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly Joins Andrea Iervolino’s Effort To Film Romantic Drama ‘I See You’ In Space
EXCLUSIVE: Former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly has teamed up with Italian producer Andrea Iervolino (Ferrari) and his Space11 Corp banner for the upcoming “romantic space drama” I See You, which aims to become the first western movie to send a filmmaker into orbit to capture a scene.
Kelly, a veteran of four space flights and former commander of the International Space Station, will serve as an advisor on the script, penned by Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider. While plot and cast details are still under wraps, Iervolino is targeting a launch date in 2026.
According to Iervolino, discussions are already in advanced stages to secure a rocket that will carry the film’s director—whose identity remains undisclosed—into space. He also plans to incorporate up to 85 percent of real space stock footage in the movie to enhance authenticity.
“As the film’s astronaut advisor on the script, Kelly—the first American astronaut to spend an entire year aboard the International Space Station—will lend his first-hand expertise to ensure authenticity in the portrayal of human endurance, isolation, and emotional connection in the vastness of space,” explained the team.
The Russian film The Challenge made headlines in 2023 by filming scenes in space, becoming the first movie to do so. Meanwhile, Doug Liman and Tom Cruise have also been developing a project that would shoot in space.
Space11’s team includes industry veterans such as Bert Ulrich, former NASA Film and Television Liaison, who currently serves as Executive Vice President of Production Development & Communications for the company.
“Having Scott Kelly on board is an extraordinary honor,” said Andrea Iervolino. “His experience brings emotional truth and scientific realism to our vision, reminding us that love and humanity transcend every boundary, even in the silence of space.”
Iervolino’s Space11 Corp specializes in stories with a space element, with credits including Ferrari, To The Bone, Maserati: The Brothers, and Captivated, featuring Al Pacino in a drama about the kidnapping of John Paul Getty III.
https://deadline.com/2025/11/nasa-astronaut-scott-kelly-advisor-film-in-space-1236607961/