SpaceX Launches Cargo Dragon on NASA CRS-35 Mission to Space Station

In another milestone for commercial spaceflight, SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket carrying the uncrewed Cargo Dragon C211 spacecraft into orbit on Tuesday morning, October 13, 2026. Liftoff took place at 6:33 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Designated as NASA CRS-35, the flight represents the 35th commercial resupply mission conducted by SpaceX under contract with the agency. The capsule is packed with over 6,300 pounds (3,300 kilograms) of scientific research experiments, technical hardware, and crew provisions to support Expedition 75 crew members living aboard the International Space Station.

SpaceX CRS-35 Mission Timeline & Profile
Falcon 9 liftoff from Cape Canaveral SLC-40 at 6:33 a.m. EDT
Booster Recovery at LZ-40: Booster B1096 completes RTLS boostback and vertical landing.
Dragon Separation & Orbit Ingress: Dragon separates at T+9:18 and opens its nosecone for ISS pursuit.

1. Launch Breakdown and Booster Recovery

The early morning liftoff lit up the Florida coastline as Falcon 9's nine Merlin 1D engines generated over 1.7 million pounds of thrust. The launch vehicle utilized first-stage booster B1096, which was completing its eighth successful mission.

Following stage separation at approximately two minutes and fifteen seconds into flight, the first stage booster executed a Return-To-Launch-Site (RTLS) maneuver, performing its boostback, re-entry, and landing burns before touching down vertically at Landing Zone 40 (LZ-40) at Cape Canaveral.

Milestone Countdown Metrics:

• Liftoff Time: 6:33:44 a.m. EDT / 10:33:44 UTC (October 13, 2026)
• Stage Separation: T+ 00:02:18
• Booster Touchdown: T+ 00:07:21 at LZ-40
• Dragon Separation: T+ 00:09:18 into low-Earth orbit

2. Scientific Experiments & Payload Breakdown

The Dragon spacecraft is delivering a diverse manifest of advanced scientific payloads designed to study the physical, biological, and technological effects of long-duration microgravity.

Payload Category	Mission Research Focus	Key Objective / Scientific Value
Biomedical Research	Neurodegeneration & Tauopathy Models	Studies microgravity effects on brain protein aggregates linked to Alzheimer's.
Materials Science	Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs)	Investigates 3D crystalline structure growth in zero-gravity environments.
Plant Biology	Root Development & Germination	Tests hydrogel plant growth media for future long-duration lunar agriculture.
Food Science	Protein Micelle Behavior	Analyzes the aging and structural coarsening of milk-protein micelles in space.
Station Hardware	Environmental Control Upgrades	Provides replacement water filtration and carbon dioxide removal assemblies.

3. Orbital Tracking & Docking Schedule

Following spacecraft separation from the Falcon 9 second stage, Dragon opened its nosecone to expose its navigation sensors and thruster arrays. Over the next 36 hours, the vehicle will perform a series of automated orbit-raising maneuvers to align its trajectory with the space station, which orbits approximately 260 miles (420 km) above Earth.

Autonomous docking is scheduled for Thursday, October 15, 2026, at approximately 11:00 a.m. EDT. Dragon will dock to the zenith (Earth-facing) port of the station's Harmony module, where Expedition 75 crew members will monitor the approach before opening hatches to begin unloading cargo.

Dragon Rendezvous & Docking Schedule
Spacecraft performs automated orbit-raising thruster burns.
Dragon approaches the 200-meter keep-out sphere around the space station.
Autonomous Docking at Harmony Zenith: Targeted for Oct. 15, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. EDT and monitored by the Expedition 75 crew.
Hatch Equalization & Ingress: Astronauts open hatches to unload more than 6,300 pounds of critical supplies.

4. What Lies Ahead for the CRS-35 Mission?

The Cargo Dragon C211 spacecraft is expected to remain docked at the International Space Station for approximately 30 days. In mid-November 2026, astronauts will re-pack the capsule with completed scientific samples, crew equipment, and trash before Dragon undocks and performs a deorbit burn to splash down safely off the coast of Florida.

SpaceX's successful CRS-35 launch highlights the ongoing rhythm of commercial space infrastructure, ensuring that low-Earth orbit research continues uninterrupted as humanity prepares for future deep-space exploration under NASA's Artemis program.