Video: Soyuz MS-01 leaves the space station for landing

NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy’s family will be watching remotely from halfway around the world when he blasts off April 9 from Kazakhstan to begin a six-month expedition on the International Space Station.

For the second time in less than a week, astronauts will leave their quarters inside the International Space Station on Thursday to outfit a relocated docking adapter to eventually receive Boeing and SpaceX commercial crew capsules.

SpaceX test-fired a Falcon 9 rocket Wednesday afternoon at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, clearing a major hurdle before it launches Saturday night — weather permitting — with a four-person crew heading for the International Space Station.