### NASA and SpaceX Gear Up for Ambitious 2025 Missions

NASA is diligently preparing for a busy 2025, with significant astronaut missions in the pipeline. According to NASA officials, SpaceX’s Crew-10 mission is slated for no earlier than February 25, 2025. This highly anticipated mission will include a diverse team comprising NASA astronauts Anne McClain, who will serve as the commander, and Nichole Ayers as the pilot. They will be joined by Takuya Onishi from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Kirill Peskov from Roscosmos as mission specialists.

Following Crew-10, NASA is planning the Crew-11 mission, expected to launch no earlier than July 2025. However, NASA has yet to announce the crew members for this mission.

In addition to SpaceX, NASA is also working with Boeing’s Starliner for future missions. The Starliner is expected to run a mission in 2025 pending the results of an ongoing investigation into issues that arose during the Crew Flight Test (CFT). During the CFT, astronauts Butch Williams and Suni Wilmore encountered propulsion problems post-launch on June 5, which were significant enough that their Starliner spacecraft made an autonomous return on September 6, leaving them on the International Space Station (ISS). Consequently, two NASA astronauts were removed from the Crew-9 manifest to allow seats for Williams and Wilmore to safely return to Earth in February 2025.

These upcoming missions are a testament to NASA's commitment to advancing human spaceflight, in collaboration with both SpaceX and Boeing. As preparations continue, the space community eagerly awaits the next milestones in this exciting journey.