The International Space Station (ISS) welcomed three new residents this morning with the successful arrival of Russia’s Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft, continuing an unbroken 24-year tradition of human presence in orbit. The crew will take over from Soyuz MS-26, maintaining the rhythm of routine crew rotations aboard the multinational orbital laboratory.
The Soyuz MS-27 crew (blue shirts) are greeted by Soyuz MS-26 (red shirts) and Crew-10 (grey shirts) as they come aboard the International Space Station, April 8, 2025. Front row: Jonny Kim (NASA), Sergey Ryzhikov (Roscosmos), Aleksey Zubritsky (Roscosmos). Second row: Aleksey Ovchinin (Roscosmos), Don Pettit (NASA), Ivan Vagner (Roscosmos), Takuya Onishi (JAXA). Third row: Anne McClain (NASA), Kirill Peskov (Roscosmos), Nichole Ayers (NASA)
Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Aleksey Zubritsky, along with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 1:47 a.m. ET. Just over three hours later, at 4:57 a.m. ET, their spacecraft docked with the ISS. Following standard leak checks and cabin pressurization, the hatches opened at 7:28 a.m. ET. The trio was warmly welcomed by the seven crew members already aboard the station—four from NASA’s Crew-10 mission and three from Soyuz MS-26.
The arrival of Soyuz MS-27 highlights the continuing collaboration between the United States and Russia in space exploration. Each Soyuz and Crew Dragon mission is deliberately crewed with at least one American and one Russian to ensure the ongoing operation of both the American and Russian segments of the ISS. Astronauts from other international partners, including Canada, Europe, and Japan, frequently join these missions. JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi, currently part of Crew-10, will soon assume command of the ISS from Roscosmos’ Aleksey Ovchinin, who is scheduled to return to Earth in just 11 days.
For NASA’s Jonny Kim and Roscosmos’ Aleksey Zubritsky, this marks their first journey to space. For Sergey Ryzhikov, it is his third. Their mission will span eight months—two months longer than the traditional six-month rotation. According to Anatoly Zak of RussianSpaceWeb.com, this extended duration is part of Roscosmos’ strategy to reduce costs by limiting the number of Soyuz flights to 1.5 per year and certifying the spacecraft for longer orbital stays.
Soyuz MS-27 replaces the MS-26 crew of Aleksey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, and NASA astronaut Don Pettit. The trio will depart the ISS on April 19, with their landing in Kazakhstan scheduled for April 20—Pettit’s 70th birthday. Pettit, known for his remarkable space photography, is NASA’s oldest active astronaut.
Since November 2, 2000, the ISS has been continuously inhabited by astronauts from across the globe. With the advent of SpaceX’s Crew Dragon in 2020, the station’s standard crew complement has been seven, though that number temporarily increases during crew handovers and private missions.
Throughout their time in orbit, ISS crews engage in cutting-edge scientific research and perform ongoing maintenance on the aging facility. Daily routines also include rigorous exercise regimens to mitigate the effects of microgravity and prepare for the eventual return to Earth.
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