First modification: 02/13/2026 - 11:41 Last modification: 02/13/2026 - 17:35
NASA and SpaceX launched four astronauts to the International Space Station this Friday, February 13, replacing the crew that departed early in the first medical evacuation in the station's history. Sophie Adenot is the second French woman to travel to space.
The essentials:
The launch, carried out at dawn at Cape Canaveral, was delayed two days due to poor weather forecasts on the east coast of the United States. It thus allowed the space station in orbit to recover its full staff after a month of operations with a minimum crew.
Crew 12 is made up of Americans Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, along with Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev and Sophie Adenot, who becomes the second Frenchwoman to travel to space after pioneer Claudie Haigneré.
This minute by minute by minute has ended. Below, the main news of the mission:
In pictures: the Falcon 9 with the Dragon spacecraft that took Sophie Adenot to the Space Station
"We have left the Earth, but the Earth has not left us"
Crew commander Jessica Meir exchanged a few words from space as the Dragon capsule continues its journey to the ISS.
"We have left the Earth, but the Earth has not left us (...) When we look at our planet from above, it is immediately clear that everything is interconnected," declared the NASA astronaut.
"We are one humanity," he added.
What is the mission about?
During their eight months at the space base, the four astronauts will carry out various experiments, including research on the effects of microgravity on their bodies.
This will involve conducting a lunar landing simulation to evaluate how abrupt changes in gravity affect the human body and cognition.
The crew will also perform ultrasounds of their blood vessels to investigate changes in circulation and pharmaceutical research related to bacteria that cause pneumonia.
American Jessica Meir, who previously worked as a marine biologist studying animals in extreme environments, will be the crew commander.
This image provided by SpaceX shows members of NASA's SpaceX mission, from left to right: Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev; NASA astronauts Jack Hathaway and Jessica Meir; and French ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Sophie Adenot as they complete a full rehearsal of launch day activities on February 9, 2026, at Cape Canaveral, Florida. AP.
Who is Sophie Adenot, the French astronaut who conquers space?
Adenot, 43, becomes the second French woman to fly into space, following in the footsteps of Claudie Haigneré, who was on the Mir space station.
Adenot was 14 years old when he saw Haigneré's mission take off. "It was a revelation (...) At that moment, I said to myself: one day, that will be me," the helicopter pilot declared in a recent briefing.
Adenot began his professional career at Airbus before joining the French Air Force at the age of 23. She made history in 2019 by becoming France's first female helicopter test pilot.
She was chosen as one of five candidates from a pool of 22,500 applicants for the European Space Agency's astronaut selection program.
Sophie Adenot celebrates her arrival in space with the rest of the crew.
Live: 25-story vehicle rises from launch tower
A live NASA-SpaceX webcast shows the 25-story vehicle rising from the launch tower as its nine Merlin engines roared to life, consuming 700,000 gallons of fuel per second, emitting clouds of steam and a reddish fireball that lit up the predawn sky.
The four crew members must arrive at the space station on Saturday afternoon after a 34-hour flight, docking with the orbital laboratory platform about 420 km above Earth.
The command room erupted in cheers as the Falcon's booster rocket successfully separated from the rest of the rocket carrying the Dragon capsule.
French astronaut Sophie Adenot takes off towards the International Space Station
A SpaceX rocket took off from Florida this Friday, February 13, with a crew composed of two American astronauts from NASA, a French astronaut, Sophie Adenot, and a Russian cosmonaut, heading to the International Space Station for an eight-month scientific mission in Earth orbit.
The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket, topped by an autonomously operating Crew Dragon capsule, named Freedom, launched from the Cape Canaveral Space Station on Florida's Atlantic coast at approximately 5:15 a.m. local time.
Welcome to this minute by minute. A SpaceX capsule will soon transport four astronauts to the International Space Station, including Frenchwoman Sophie Adenot.
Related keywords
The content you requested does not exist or is no longer available.
