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Astronauts travel to the International Space Station (ISS) inside a crew spacecraft launched by a rocket. Once in orbit, the spacecraft adjusts its path, approaches the station in a controlled rendezvous, and docks. After the crew and ground teams complete post-docking checks, the hatch opens and the astronauts enter the station. They later undock in a crew spacecraft and return to Earth; the flight time and landing method depend on the vehicle and mission.
As of NASA’s visiting-vehicle status on October 9, 2026, the two crew transportation systems represented at the ISS are SpaceX Crew Dragon and Soyuz. Cargo spacecraft also visit the station, but they are not crew taxis.
Which spacecraft carry astronauts to the ISS?
NASA’s October 9, 2026 visiting-vehicle status identifies two crew transportation systems at the station: SpaceX Crew Dragon and Soyuz. The vehicles take different routes from different launch sites, but both carry their crews through the same broad sequence: rocket launch, orbital flight, rendezvous, docking, and transfer into the station.
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They are distinct from cargo vehicles. Progress, Cygnus, and cargo Dragon deliver supplies rather than astronauts. The ISS receives both crew and cargo traffic. Some visiting vehicles dock; some cargo vehicles can instead be captured or berthed using the station’s robotic system. A vehicle arriving with supplies should not be assumed to be capable of carrying a crew.
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The station is a destination moving in orbit, not a fixed point above a launch pad. NASA’s station overview says the ISS circles Earth 16 times a day. A crew vehicle must therefore reach orbit and then arrange its path and timing to meet the station as both continue moving around Earth.
How the two current crew routes differ
| Route | Launch vehicle and site | Station arrival example | Return pattern in NASA examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| SpaceX Crew Dragon | Falcon 9 from Florida | NASA’s February 2026 Crew-12 account says Dragon was to dock autonomously at the space-facing port of Harmony. The account describes this mission’s sequence, not a guaranteed schedule for every flight. | NASA’s historical Crew-8 overview describes a water landing off Florida. |
| Soyuz | Soyuz rocket from Baikonur, Kazakhstan | NASA’s July 2026 Soyuz MS-29 account describes a two-orbit trip of about three hours and an automatic docking at Prichal. | NASA’s Soyuz mission history illustrates a parachute-assisted land landing in Kazakhstan. |
The table describes the cited mission examples and vehicle patterns; it is not a universal itinerary for every crew. In particular, the roughly three-hour arrival applies to Soyuz MS-29’s July 2026 profile. It is not a general travel-time estimate for all Soyuz flights or for Dragon. Nor do these examples establish that one system is categorically faster or safer: that would require a matched comparison beyond the mission accounts cited here.
What happens from launch to arrival?
1. A rocket puts the crew vehicle into orbit
The crew boards its spacecraft before launch, and a rocket boosts the vehicle toward orbital speed. The rocket’s job is to accelerate the spacecraft and place it on an orbital path; it does not simply point the crew directly at the station. After separation from the launch vehicle, the spacecraft uses its own systems to make adjustments during the journey.
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Reaching orbit is only the first milestone. The ISS is moving around Earth, so the crew vehicle must travel in a way that brings it to the station’s location and relative motion. A launch and a rendezvous are related parts of one trip, but they are not the same event.
2. The spacecraft adjusts its orbit and approaches
After separation, the vehicle navigates relative to the station and adjusts its orbit for an approach. This is called rendezvous: the spacecraft and station are brought into a suitable position and relative motion for a controlled arrival. It is not a straight-line flight from the launch site to a visible target. The station’s orbit and the vehicle’s changing path both matter.
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NASA’s Crew-12 and Soyuz MS-29 accounts describe automatic spacecraft maneuvers and docking, with flight controllers monitoring operations. In the Crew-12 example, SpaceX monitored Dragon’s automatic spacecraft maneuvers from Hawthorne, while NASA monitored station operations from Houston. The accounts show how automation and ground monitoring feature in these missions; they do not mean that each flight has identical timing or procedures.
3. Docking connects the spacecraft to the station
Docking is the final controlled contact and connection between the visiting vehicle and the ISS. The specific port depends on the spacecraft and the station configuration. In NASA’s February 2026 Crew-12 account, Dragon was scheduled to dock at Harmony’s space-facing port. In the July 2026 Soyuz MS-29 example, Soyuz docked at Prichal.
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4. The hatch opens after docking
A completed docking does not mean the astronauts immediately walk into the station. The spacecraft and station are connected first; the crew and ground teams carry out post-docking steps, and the hatch is opened afterward. NASA’s Crew-12 account describes the crew changing out of spacesuits and preparing cargo for offload before opening the hatch between Dragon and Harmony. NASA’s Soyuz MS-29 account likewise records that the hatches opened after docking.
Once the hatch is open, the visiting crew enters the station and joins the expedition. NASA’s station overview reports that more than 290 people representing 26 countries and five International Partners had visited the ISS as of the overview accessed in 2026. These visitors have arrived across a range of missions and vehicles, not all on the two current crew routes alone.
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How long does the trip take?
There is no single travel time that applies to every ISS crew. A spacecraft’s arrival profile depends on its mission. NASA’s July 2026 Soyuz MS-29 report gives a specific example: the crew reached the station after a two-orbit journey of about three hours. That number describes the launch-to-arrival profile for MS-29, not a standard that should be applied to other Soyuz flights or to Dragon.
It is also useful to distinguish travel time from time aboard the station. In the MS-29 account, NASA described the crew’s planned station stay as approximately eight months. That is the planned expedition duration for that mission, not the time needed to get there. A crew can spend hours travelling to the ISS and then remain there for months.
- Launch-to-arrival time: the mission-specific interval from launch to reaching the station.
- Station stay: the planned period living and working aboard the ISS.
- Return trip: the later journey after the crew departs the station, including undocking and return to Earth.
These are different parts of a mission. When a report gives a travel-time figure, check which flight it describes and whether it refers to launch-to-docking rather than the whole expedition.
How astronauts return to Earth
A crew returns in a crew spacecraft. The vehicle undocks from the station, departs, performs a deorbit maneuver, and re-enters Earth’s atmosphere before landing. The return is vehicle-specific: NASA’s historical Crew-8 overview describes Dragon landing in water off Florida, while NASA’s Soyuz mission history illustrates a parachute-assisted land landing in Kazakhstan.
Water landing and land landing are not two names for the same operation, and one should not be presented as the universal way ISS crews come home. The cited NASA accounts show different return patterns for Dragon and Soyuz. The specific mission and spacecraft determine the planned return profile and landing location.
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Undocking is the start of the return journey, not the landing itself. After leaving the station, the crew vehicle still has to complete its own departure, deorbit, and reentry sequence. The broader order is the reverse of arrival in the sense that the crew separates from the station and comes back to Earth, but the manoeuvres and landing depend on the spacecraft.
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Mission-specific updates are the best way to answer questions such as which crew is aboard, when a spacecraft is expected to arrive, or which port it will use. NASA’s visiting-vehicle status and individual mission accounts can change as vehicles arrive, depart, or schedules are updated. A past docking is a useful illustration, but it does not establish the configuration or timing for a later flight.
- Identify the spacecraft and mission. Check whether the arrival is Dragon or Soyuz and note the mission name. Do not mistake an uncrewed cargo delivery for a crew launch.
- Check the launch and destination details for that mission. NASA’s examples show Dragon launching on Falcon 9 from Florida and Soyuz launching from Baikonur, but use the current mission account for its actual plans.
- Separate launch, docking, and hatch opening. They are distinct milestones. A launch does not mean the crew has reached the station, and docking does not mean the hatch is already open.
- Use the mission’s stated travel time. Do not apply Soyuz MS-29’s about-three-hour profile to another mission.
- Check the return plan separately. The spacecraft’s departure, reentry, and landing method can differ from another vehicle’s.
What the mission examples do—and do not—show
Crew-12 and Soyuz MS-29 make the process concrete: one Dragon example launched four international crewmembers from Cape Canaveral and was to dock autonomously at Harmony; one Soyuz example launched three crew members from Baikonur, made a two-orbit trip of about three hours, and docked automatically at Prichal. Both describe monitored, controlled spacecraft operations followed by hatch opening.
These examples establish how those flights were described, not a universal timetable, port assignment, crew size, or head-to-head performance ranking. For example, NASA’s station overview accessed in 2026 says four different crew ships and five different resupply ships had visited the ISS. That broader history is one reason not to treat two mission accounts as the complete record of every spacecraft or visit.
The reliable short version is: astronauts ride a crew spacecraft to orbit, the spacecraft rendezvous with and docks to the moving station, and the crew enters only after the hatch is opened. Later, they undock and return to Earth in a crew vehicle. The route, timing, station port, and landing method should be checked against the specific mission.
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