Houston, February 15 — The International Space Station has regained full staffing with the arrival of four new astronauts on Saturday, replacing colleagues who had to return early due to health concerns. SpaceX successfully delivered the US, French, and Russian astronauts a day after launching them from Cape Canaveral.
Last month marked NASA’s first medical evacuation in 65 years of human spaceflight. One of the four astronauts launched by SpaceX last summer experienced a serious health issue, prompting an emergency return to Earth. This left only three crew members — one American and two Russians — aboard, leading NASA to pause spacewalks and reduce research activities.
The new crew members set to stay aboard for eight to nine months include NASA’s Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, France’s Sophie Adenot, and Russian astronaut Andrei Fedyaev. Notably, Meir and Fedyaev are veterans of previous missions; Meir participated in the first all-female spacewalk during her 2019 visit. Adenot, a military helicopter pilot, is only the second French woman to fly in space. Hathaway, a captain in the US Navy, joins the team as well.
Upon docking, French astronaut Adenot greeted the station with a cheerful “Bonjour!” A few hours later, the hatches opened, and the crew exchanged hugs and high-fives, with Meir remarking, “Let’s get rolling.”
NASA has not disclosed the identity of the astronaut who fell ill in orbit on January 7 or detailed the medical condition, citing privacy concerns. The affected astronaut and three others returned to Earth more than a month earlier than planned, spending their first night in a hospital before returning to Houston.
NASA confirmed that preflight medical protocols for the new crew remained unchanged, and the agency continues to prioritize crew safety and health during missions.