International Crew Set to Dock at Space Station

Four astronauts will replace a previous crew that had to return to Earth early due to a medical issue.

Published on Feb. 14, 2026

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Four astronauts from the United States, France, and Russia are set to dock at the International Space Station on Saturday for a months-long research mission. The crew, known as Crew-12, will replace Crew-11 which had to return to Earth a month early due to a medical emergency, the first such evacuation in the space station's history.

Why it matters

The International Space Station is a symbol of international cooperation, with astronauts from various countries working together on scientific research. This new crew will continue important microgravity experiments and studies on the effects of space on the human body, as the aging space station prepares to be decommissioned in 2030.

The details

The Crew-12 astronauts - Americans Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, French astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev - blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida on Friday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. After over 30 hours in flight, they are expected to dock at the ISS around 3:15pm Eastern time on Saturday. The previous Crew-11 had to return to Earth early in January due to a medical issue, the details of which NASA has not disclosed.

  • Crew-12 launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida on February 14, 2026.
  • Crew-12 is expected to dock at the International Space Station around 3:15pm Eastern on February 15, 2026.
  • Crew-11 returned to Earth a month earlier than planned in January 2026 due to a medical emergency.

The players

Jessica Meir

An American astronaut who will serve as the commander of Crew-12.

Jack Hathaway

An American astronaut on the Crew-12 mission.

Sophie Adenot

A French astronaut on the Crew-12 mission, who will become the second French woman to fly to space.

Andrey Fedyaev

A Russian cosmonaut on the Crew-12 mission, who previously spent time on the ISS as part of Crew-6 in 2023.

International Space Station (ISS)

The football field-sized space station that has been continuously inhabited for the last 25 years, but is scheduled to be decommissioned and deorbited by 2030.

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What they’re saying

“We have left the Earth, but the Earth has not left us. When we gaze on our planet from above, it is immediately clear that everything is interconnected. We are one humankind.”

— Jessica Meir

What’s next

The judge in the case will decide on Tuesday whether or not to allow Walker Reed Quinn out on bail.

The takeaway

This new crew of astronauts will continue important scientific research on the aging International Space Station, as it prepares to be decommissioned in the coming years, highlighting the continued international cooperation in space exploration.