Spacecraft

Blogs about spacecraft

The Dragon cargo spacecraft departing the International Space Station to end its CRS-33 mission (Image NASA+)

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A little while ago, SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft ended its CRS-33 (Cargo Resupply Service 33) mission for NASA splashing down smoothly off the coast of California. The Dragon left the International Space Station about 12 hours earlier. The Dragon spacecraft had reached the International Space Station on August 25, 2025. For SpaceX, it was the 50th mission to the Station, including the Dragon cargo and Crew Dragon crewed missions.

Views of the Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft docking with the International Space Station in its Crew-12 mission (Image NASA+)

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A few hours ago, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft docked with the Harmony module of the International Space Station, completing the first part of its Crew-12 or SpaceX Crew-12 mission that began with its launch about 34 hours earlier. After checking that the pressure gets properly balanced, the hatch will be opened to allow Andrey Fedyaev, Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir, and Sophie Adenot to enter the Station and start their mission.

The Crew-12 mission crew: Andrey Fedyaev, Jack Hathaway, Jessica Meir, and Sophie Adenot.

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A little while ago, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Freedom spacecraft blasted off atop a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in its Crew-12 or SpaceX Crew-12 mission. After almost exactly ten minutes, it successfully separated from the rocket’s last stage and went en route to carry out its mission. This is the 12th crewed mission of the Crew Dragon spacecraft within the normal rotation of the International Space Station crew.

The Menghzou spacecraft splashes down (Photo courtesy of Wang Heng/Xinhua)

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Yesterday, the Chinese Menghzou spacecraft, launched on the Long March 10 rocket’s first stage from the Wenchang launch site, completed a suborbital flight test. The rocket conducted its own test, lasting nearly 8 minutes, with a controlled splashdown, as part of the development of a reusable launch system. At the end of the test, the Menghzou splashed down as well, but in its case, it was also recovered, as the capsule is designed to carry taikonauts and is also reusable. These were important tests because their success represents a step forward toward Chinese crewed Moon missions.

The Shenzhou 20 spacecraft's capsule after landing (Photo courtesy Xinhua/Li Zhipeng)

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A few hours ago, the Shenzhou 20 spacecraft landed after spending 270 days docked at the Chinese Tiangong space station, where it arrived on April 24, 2025, carrying three taikonauts: Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui, and Wang Jie. The Shenzhou 20 departed the station about nine hours earlier and landed at a site called Dongfeng in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The three taikonauts returned to Earth on November 14, 2025, aboard the Shenzhou 21 spacecraft because the Shenzhou 20 suffered small fractures to a window following the impact of what was likely space debris and was deemed unsafe for human transport. Despite this, the preliminary inspection showed that the Shenzhou 20 is generally in good condition.