Expedition 72

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Expedition 72
Iss072e007525-cropped.jpg
Expedition 72 crew
Mission type Long-duration expedition
Operator NASA / Roscosmos
Mission duration87 days, 6 hours and 54 minutes (in progress)
Expedition
Space station International Space Station
Began23 September 2024
EndedMarch 2025
Arrived aboard
Departed aboard
Crew
Crew size7–11
Members
ISS Expedition 72 Patch.png
Expedition 72 mission patch
Iss072-s-002.jpg
Left to right, top row: Ovchinin, Williams, Wilmore
Middle row: Vagner, Pettit
Bottom row: Gorbunov, Hague

Expedition 72 is the 72nd long-duration expedition to the International Space Station (ISS). The expedition began with the departure of Soyuz MS-25 on 23 September 2024 and is led by Sunita Williams, her second time serving as commander of the ISS. [1] It will continue the extensive scientific research conducted aboard the ISS, focusing on various fields, including biology, human physiology, physics, and materials science. The crew members will also maintain and upgrade the space station systems.

Contents

Background, Crew, and Events

Initially, the expedition consists of Roscosmos cosmonauts Aleksey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, and Aleksandr Gorbunov, and NASA astronauts Barry E. Wilmore, Sunita Williams, Donald Pettit, and Nick Hague.

Wilmore and Williams arrived at the station on 6 June 2024 for what was expected to be a brief visit as part of the Boeing Crew Flight Test mission. However, their spacecraft experienced technical issues and returned to Earth uncrewed, and Wilmore and Williams were added to the Expedition 71/72 crew. [2]

Ovchinin, Vagner, and Pettit arrived at the station on 11 September aboard Soyuz MS-26. [3] [4] Hague and Gorbunov arrived to the station on 29 September aboard SpaceX Crew-9. [5] After a handover period, SpaceX Crew-8 departed on 23 October.

In March 2025, SpaceX Crew-10 is expected to arrive, transporting NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov. [6]

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, along with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, are expected to arrive at the station aboard Soyuz MS-27 in March 2025. [7]

Expedition 72 will come to a close in March 2025 with the departure of Ovchinin, Vagner, and Pettit depart on Soyuz MS-26. [8]

Crew

FlightCrew memberIncrement 72aIncrement 72bIncrement 72cIncrement 72d
23-29 Sep 202429 Sep-23 Oct 202423 Oct 2024-Mar 2025
(in progress)
Mar-Mar 2025
(planned)
Soyuz MS-26 Flag of Russia.svg Aleksey Ovchinin, Roscosmos
Third [a] spaceflight
Flight Engineer
  Flag of Russia.svg Ivan Vagner, Roscosmos
Second spaceflight
Flight Engineer
Flag of the United States.svg Donald Pettit, NASA
Fourth spaceflight
Flight Engineer
SpaceX Crew-8 Flag of the United States.svg Matthew Dominick, NASA
First spaceflight
Flight EngineerOff Station
Flag of the United States.svg Michael Barratt, NASA
Third spaceflight
Flight EngineerOff Station
Flag of the United States.svg Jeanette Epps, NASA
First spaceflight
Flight EngineerOff Station
Flag of Russia.svg Alexander Grebenkin, Roscosmos
First spaceflight
Flight EngineerOff Station
Boeing Crew Flight Test Flag of the United States.svg Barry E. Wilmore, NASA
Third spaceflight
Flight Engineer
Flag of the United States.svg Sunita Williams, NASA
Third spaceflight
Commander
SpaceX Crew-9
Flag of the United States.svg Nick Hague, NASA
Second [a] spaceflight
Off StationFlight Engineer
Flag of Russia.svg Aleksandr Gorbunov, Roscosmos
First spaceflight
Off StationFlight Engineer
Soyuz MS-27
(planned)
Flag of Russia.svg Sergey Ryzhikov, Roscosmos
Third spaceflight
Off StationFlight Engineer
Flag of Russia.svg Alexey Zubritsky, Roscosmos
First spaceflight
Off StationFlight Engineer
Flag of the United States.svg Jonny Kim, NASA
First spaceflight
Off StationFlight Engineer

Notes

  1. 1 2 Not counting the aborted flight of Soyuz MS-10.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sunita Williams</span> American astronaut and Navy officer (born 1965)

Sunita Lyn "Suni" Williams is an American astronaut, retired U.S. Navy officer, and former record holder for most spacewalks by a woman (seven) and most spacewalk time for a woman. Williams was assigned to the International Space Station as a member of Expedition 14 and Expedition 15. In 2012, she served as a flight engineer on Expedition 32 and then commander of Expedition 33. In 2024, she returned to the ISS on the Boeing Crew Flight Test, the first crewed mission of the Boeing Starliner; her return to Earth has been delayed until February 2025. As such, from August 2024 until March 2025, Williams and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore are pivoting ahead to undertake various scientific experiments and maintenance tasks aboard the International Space Station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aleksey Ovchinin</span> Russian Air Force Major and cosmonaut (born 1971)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ivan Vagner</span> Russian cosmonaut (born 1985)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Expedition 67</span> Long-duration mission to the International Space Station

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