SpaceX Crew-10 begins ISS crew swap after 9-month delay

SpaceX’s Crew-10 mission successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS), bringing a new team of astronauts aboard. Their arrival marks the start of a crew swap, allowing two astronauts to finally return to Earth after an extended stay of nine months.

In a significant milestone for NASA and its international partners, four astronauts from the SpaceX Crew-10 mission successfully docked with the ISS in the early morning of March 16, 2025. According to NASA, the spacecraft carrying NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Russian cosmonaut Kirill Peskov arrived at the station at 12:04 a.m. EDT. The docking took place approximately 260 miles above the Atlantic Ocean.

Following the Dragon spacecraft’s successful docking, the crew conducted standard leak checks and pressurization protocols to ensure a safe transition. By 1:45 a.m., the hatch opening was completed, and the astronauts were able to welcome their colleagues in zero gravity.

The crew was greeted by the station’s existing seven-member team, which includes NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been aboard the ISS for nearly nine months. This mission kicked off the long-awaited crew swap. This will allow Wilmore and Williams to return to Earth after their extended stay caused by delays with Boeing’s Starliner capsule, which led NASA to send an empty craft earlier this year.

The arrival of Crew-10, scheduled to stay aboard the ISS for approximately six months, marked a pivotal moment in NASA’s mission to rotate astronauts on the space station. The mission, originally planned as a routine crew rotation, gained more significance due to political pressure over the delayed launch and Wilmore and Williams’ extended stay.

Wilmore, Williams, NASA astronaut Nick Hague, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov will leave the ISS on March 19. The crew swap ensures a fresh team of astronauts for ongoing missions and research aboard the ISS, with McClain, Ayers, Onishi, and Peskov taking over their duties for the next six months.