NASA Jonny Kim Headed For ISS To Join The Expedition 72/73 Crew

In an official blog post, NASA announced that its astronaut Jonny Kim and two cosmonauts, Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, will head for the ISS. This journey to space will be aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft on 8 April 2025 from a launch site in Kazakhstan.

Why Is NASA Jonny Kim Heading To The ISS?

The purpose for this launch to the ISS as identified by NASA will be to join the Expedition 72/73 crew. All astronauts and cosmonauts who are part of this crew on the ISS will conduct studies aboard the ISS to help advance scientific research across a wide range of topics.

This crew mission does not involve only NASA astronauts but also pulls in other talents from various regions. Already some astronauts and cosmonauts that are part of the Expedition 72/73 crew are aboard the ISS conducting studies to advance scientific knowledge.

Once on the ISS, Kim, Ryzhikov, and Zubritsky will join the other crew members who are already aboard the ISS. The other crew members are from NASA, JAXA, and Roscosmos.

In the official post announcing this coming launch, NASA identified all seven Expedition 72/73 personnel already aboard the ISS. They are NASA astronauts Nichole Ayers, Anne McClain, and Don Pettit, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin, Kirill Peskov, and Ivan Vagner.

As part of the Expedition 72/73 mission, all ten crew members will conduct research into biology, human physiology, and material science. They will also help with the maintenance and routine upgrade of the ISS systems.

What We Know About The Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 Spacecraft

The Soyuz MS-27 is a Russian-built spacecraft that has made a name for itself as “one of the most reliable human spacecraft in the world.” It also boasts to be the longest-serving human space system as it went into operation in November 1966.

For years the Soyuz MS-27 was the spacecraft of choice for sending astronauts and cosmonauts to the ISS. For this launch to take place on 8 April 2025 we will see the Soyuz MS-27 in action as it takes NASA Jonny Kim and Roscosmos Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky to the ISS.

If you want to watch this launch live you can use NASA+ as the launch will be live streamed. These brave astronauts and cosmonauts will return to Earth after spending eight months on the ISS.