Four Spacefarers From Three Space Agencies Set For Long-Duration Mission

NASA announced the crew members for its upcoming SpaceX Crew-12 mission to the International Space Station in early 2026. Four crew members from three space agencies will launch no earlier than February 15, 2026, for a long-duration science mission.

The crew include NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway who will serve as commander and pilot, respectively. They will be joined by ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev, who will be the mission specialists.

The four Crew-12 members will join Expedition 74 crew members currently on board the ISS.

This flight will be the 12th crew rotation with SpaceX as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. They will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to prepare humans for future space exploration missions to the Moon and Mars, as well as for the benefit of people here on Earth.

Meir is a native of Caribou, Maine, and was selected as an astronaut in 2013. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Brown University, a master’s degree in space studies from the International Space University, and a doctorate in marine biology from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego. Meir has over 205 days in space with Expedition 61/62.

Hathaway is a commander in the U.S. Navy and was selected with the 2021 astronaut class. He is a native of South Windsor, Connecticut and this will be his first space flight. He holds bachelor’s degrees in physics and history from the U.S. Naval Academy, a master’s degree in flight dynamics from Cranfield University, and national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College. He is also a graduate of the Empire Test Pilot’s School in 2011. Hathaway was deployed on the USS Truman when he was selected, and has accumulated more than 2,500 flight hours in 30 different aircraft.

This upcoming mission will be Adenot’s first space flight. She holds a degree in engineering from ISAE-SUPAERO in Toulouse, France, and a master’s degree in human factors engineering from MIT. She is a helicopter pilot and is a Lt. Col. in the French Air and Space Force. She has logged over 3,000 flight hours in 22 different helicopters and has also been a helicopter test pilot.

Fedyaev will be embarking on his second long-duration stay on board the ISS. He graduated from the Krasnodar Military Aviation Institute in 2004 and earned qualification as a pilot engineer. He has served as deputy commander of an Ilyushin-38 aircraft unit in Kamchatka Region and has logged over 600 flight hours as he achieved the rank of second-class military pilot. He was selected as an astronaut in 2012 and was part of the Crew-6 mission, spending 186 days in orbit.

FMI:  www.nasa.gov/