Dragon spacecraft gears up for crew 12 arrival and station science work

by Clarence Oxford
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Feb 03, 2026

The Expedition 74 crew has opened the week with preparations for the arrival of NASA's SpaceX Crew-12 mission while keeping the International Space Station supplied and its science hardware in working order. A SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft is also being readied for its return to Earth after delivering experiments, supplies and hardware in August 2025.

The next mission to the orbital outpost, NASA's SpaceX Crew-12, is targeted to launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, no earlier than Feb. 11. NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway will serve as commander and pilot, flying alongside mission specialists Sophie Adenot of ESA and Andrey Fedyaev of Roscosmos for a nine month research stay aboard the station.

After launch, Crew-12 will guide their Dragon spacecraft to dock at the Harmony module's space facing port. Once they arrive, the four person crew will join the current Expedition 74 residents, expanding the station's population and enabling an increased tempo of microgravity science that cannot be replicated on Earth.

Flight Engineer Chris Williams of NASA is preparing for the new arrivals by reviewing the tools, displays and procedures used to monitor Dragon's final approach and docking. His work includes studying the computers that manage the station's orientation and practicing the steps required if he needs to respond to off nominal conditions as the spacecraft closes in on Harmony.

Williams is also spending time on logistics inside the visiting Dragon cargo vehicle that is currently berthed to the station. He is packing completed experiments, research samples, used hardware and trash into the spacecraft so the most valuable items can be brought back for analysis, while unneeded material will be disposed of during reentry.

Earlier in the mission, Dragon delivered a wide range of investigations, supplies and equipment during its August 25, 2025, arrival. Those payloads are now feeding a steady stream of research as Expedition 74 continues long running studies and prepares for new experiments that will be conducted by Crew-12.

To keep the station's research infrastructure ready, Williams has been servicing several advanced science facilities. Inside the TangoLab platform he replaced power, control and stowage components that support investigations such as studies of virulent bacteria and early cancer detection techniques, helping ensure the hardware can safely host sensitive biological samples.

He also worked on the Advanced Space Experiment Processor 4, a versatile unit that can house and process samples for microbiology and physics research. By swapping out a hard drive, Williams helped maintain the data handling capabilities of a facility that can operate aboard Dragon, Cygnus and the station itself, supporting a wide range of experiment configurations.

On the Russian side of the complex, Flight Engineer Sergei Mikaev started his day with a session on an exercise cycle while connected to sensors and a blood pressure cuff. Commander Sergey Kud Sverchkov assisted with the test, which tracks how cardiovascular function changes over time in weightlessness and informs countermeasures to protect crew health.

Mikaev then turned to cargo and housekeeping tasks in the Russian segment, packing obsolete hardware and trash for disposal in the Progress 92 resupply ship. He also cleaned ventilation systems inside the Zvezda service module to keep air flowing properly and maintain a healthy environment for the crew.

Kud Sverchkov devoted part of his shift to setting up the Plasma Kristall 4 investigation in the Columbus laboratory module. By switching the experiment from neon to argon gas, he configured the facility to explore the behavior of complex plasmas, work that can aid spacecraft design, shed light on how planets form and contribute to fundamental physics.

Later, the commander carried out a photographic inspection of windows in the Zvezda module. These regular surveys help engineers on the ground monitor the condition of external surfaces and viewports after long exposure to the harsh environment of space, supporting planning for maintenance and future upgrades to the orbiting laboratory.