The International Space Station (ISS) returned to full strength on Saturday with the arrival of four new astronauts, following a medical evacuation in January that left the station understaffed. SpaceX launched the crew from Cape Canaveral, Florida, a day earlier, carrying NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, France's Sophie Adenot, and Russia's Andrey Fedyaev.
The quartet docked at the ISS, orbiting 277 miles (445km) above Earth, and were greeted by the three existing crew members. The arrival restores the station's full complement after a medical issue forced the early return of four astronauts last month, marking NASA's first such evacuation in 65 years of human spaceflight.
Jessica Meir, a marine biologist, and Andrey Fedyaev, a former military pilot, are both returning to the ISS. Meir participated in the first all-female spacewalk during her previous visit in 2019. Sophie Adenot, a military helicopter pilot, becomes only the second French woman to travel to space. Jack Hathaway is a US Navy captain.
Upon docking, Adenot called out “Bonjour!” and French President Emmanuel Macron expressed support in a social media post, stating: “In space as on Earth, it is by uniting our strengths that we accomplish the extraordinary.” The hatches opened a few hours later, and the seven astronauts exchanged hugs and high-fives, with Meir saying, “Let’s get rolling.”
The new crew will stay for eight to nine months, taking over from the outgoing team. NASA has not disclosed the identity or nature of the medical issue that led to the January evacuation, citing medical privacy, but confirmed that preflight medical checks for the replacements were not altered.
