SpaceX Crew-13 rocket arrives at launch pad in Florida

The rocket was rolled out to Space Launch Complex 40 on Sunday, September 27, and raised to a vertical position ahead of liftoff scheduled for no earlier than 11:10 a.m. EDT on October 1.

At the launch pad, rocket and ground systems engineering teams conducted an integrated static fire of the Falcon 9, followed by detailed reviews of the test data.

Crew-13 will carry NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov to the International Space Station for a long-duration mission.

The crew will conduct scientific research aboard the orbiting laboratory aimed at supporting future human exploration beyond low Earth orbit and benefiting life on Earth.

For Delaney, Kutryk and Teteryatnikov, the mission will mark their first spaceflight. Crew-13 will be Watkins’ second spaceflight, making her the first NASA astronaut to launch aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft twice.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that SpaceX launched its massive Starship rocket from its Texas site, marking the vehicle's first operational mission to deploy satellites into Earth's orbit.