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NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov launched aboard the SpaceX Dragon Endurance spacecraft on Aug. 26 on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The four crew members are scheduled to arrive at the International Space Station on Aug. 27 where they will conduct a six-month mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions. Such research benefits people on Earth and lays the groundwork for future human exploration through the agency’s Artemis missions, which will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future expeditions to Mars.

NASA astronaut Frank Rubio and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin gave farewell remarks ahead of hatch closure of the Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft on September 27. Following hatch closure, the vehicle undocked from the International Space Station’s Prichal module, returning to Earth a few hours later for a parachute-assisted landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan. During his mission, Rubio broke the record for longest single spaceflight for a U.S. astronaut spending 371 consecutive days living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory to advance scientific knowledge and demonstrate new technologies for future human and robotic exploration missions as part of NASA’s Moon and Mars exploration approach, including lunar missions through NASA’s Artemis program.

On a Monday afternoon at 2:28 p.m. EST, the space shuttle Atlantis, along with its six-member crew, initiated an 11-day mission to deliver essential supplies to the International Space Station (ISS). The launch took place at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This mission had a dual purpose: to ferry critical spare hardware to the ISS and to bring back a station crew member who had spent more than two months in space. Atlantis was loaded with approximately 30,000 pounds of replacement parts designed to support the ISS. These parts were vital for the station's power systems, thermal regulation to prevent overheating, and maintaining the proper orientation and positioning in space. The shuttle's unique capabilities made it the most suitable means of transporting these substantial pieces of equipment.