NASA, SpaceX to launch 2nd crew rotation mission to space station

NASA and SpaceX are targeting April 20 at the earliest for launch of the second crew rotation mission with astronauts on an American rocket and spacecraft from the United States to the International Space Station (ISS), said NASA on Friday.

The mission, dubbed Crew-2, will launch four astronauts aboard a Crew Dragon spacecraft on a Falcon 9 rocket to the ISS.

NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur will serve as spacecraft commander and pilot, respectively. Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, and European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet will join as mission specialists, according to NASA.

The mission will lift off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew is scheduled for a long-duration stay aboard the orbiting laboratory, living and working as part of a seven-member crew.

Crew-2 astronauts are set to return in fall 2021, said NASA.