NASA and SpaceX successfully launch four astronauts to the space station

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SpaceX successfully launched four astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS) for NASA early Thursday morning.

The successful launch comes after the first attempt was abandoned at the last minute on Monday due to a clogged filter in the engine’s ignition system.

The Falcon 9 rocket lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida shortly after midnight. There are four crew members on board – NASA astronauts Stephen Bowen and Warren Hoburgh, Sultan Alneyadi of the United Arab Emirates and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.

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Alneyadi is the first person from the Arab world to go on an extended stay of several months. He is also the second person from the United Arab Emirates to fly into space.

“Welcome to orbit,” SpaceX Launch Control said, noting that the launch came four years after the capsule’s first orbital test flight. “If you enjoyed the trip, don’t forget to give us five stars.”

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The launch is SpaceX’s ninth manned flight to date, and the fourth for the Crew Dragon Endeavor capsule, according to Space.com.

Crew-6 astronauts will replace the US-Russian-Japanese crew that has been on board the ISS since October.

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Crew 6 is expected to dock with the ISS for a six-month science stay early Friday morning.

Bowen, leader of Crew-6, said the four worked well as a team despite the differences between their countries. Even with tensions over the war in Ukraine, the US and Russia continue to work together on the space station and trade seats on rides.

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“It’s just amazing to be able to fly with these guys,” Bowen said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.