NASA and SpaceX confirmed they are proceeding toward a launch of the Crew-12 mission at 5:15 a.m. EST on Friday, February 13. The mission was previously delayed by 48 hours due to unfavorable weather conditions along the ascent corridor. While the forecast at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station remains a promising 90% favorable, teams are maintaining a close watch on high winds and wave heights in the North Atlantic, where the Dragon spacecraft would land in the event of an emergency abort.
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The four-person crew, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir (Commander) and Jack Hathaway (Pilot), ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, will travel to the International Space Station (ISS) for an eight-month science mission. This crew serves as a critical replacement for Crew-11, which conducted the first-ever “controlled medical evacuation” in ISS history on January 15, 2026. That early return left the station with a reduced “skeleton crew” of just three members, making the arrival of Crew-12 essential to restoring full operational capacity.
.@NASA and @SpaceX proceed toward Crew-12’s launch targeted for 5:15am ET on Friday, Feb. 13. Meanwhile, Exp 74 monitored radiation, studied crew psychology, and maintained life support systems on the station. More… https://t.co/bq4UYTRDzW pic.twitter.com/5NATtbhFg7
— International Space Station (@Space_Station) February 12, 2026
Once docked, the quartet will begin Expedition 74/75, focusing on over 200 experiments including studies on pneumonia-causing bacteria and on-demand intravenous fluid generation. For Commander Jessica Meir, the journey includes a personal touch: a small stuffed rabbit belonging to her daughter, which will serve as the mission’s “zero-g indicator” to signal when the crew has reached the weightlessness of orbit.
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