SpaceX Crew-13 Reaches ISS in Record 7 Hours 55 Minutes
SpaceX’s Crew-13 reached the International Space Station in just 7 hours and 55 minutes, setting a new record for a US spacecraft carrying astronauts.
SpaceX’s Crew-13 has reached the International Space Station (ISS) in just 7 hours and 55 minutes after launch, setting a new record for the fastest journey from launch to docking by a US spacecraft.
The Crew Dragon capsule, named Grace, docked with the ISS at 4:35 am IST on October 2 after lifting off from Florida’s Space Coast. The mission surpassed the previous US record of 12 hours and 33 minutes, set by a robotic Dragon cargo spacecraft in November 2024.
For an astronaut mission, Crew-13 also beat the previous US record of 14 hours and 43 minutes, set by Crew-11 in August 2025.
SpaceX said the unusually short journey was largely possible because the ISS was in an especially favourable position at the time of launch. The orbital mechanics allowed the spacecraft to take a trajectory close to the fastest possible route.
The achievement, however, is not the overall record for reaching the ISS. A Russian Soyuz spacecraft carried three astronauts to the station in just 3 hours and 3 minutes in May 2020 using a fast-track trajectory.
Crew-13 includes NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov. The crew is expected to spend around six months aboard the ISS conducting scientific research and supporting station operations.
They will replace the Crew-12 astronauts, who have been aboard the station since February.
