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Falcon 9 rocket test-fired for Axiom commercial crew mission
SpaceX rolled a Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule to their launch pad Tuesday and test-fired the booster's engines Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center, setting up for launch Friday of four private space fliers on a 10-day mission to the International Space Station.

NASA bumps Artemis countdown rehearsal until after Axiom crew launch
NASA officials said Tuesday they are standing down from a cryogenic loading test on the agency's Space Launch System moon rocket until after the launch of a commercial crew mission from a neighboring pad at the Kennedy Space Center. A countdown test Monday was delayed by what NASA managers characterized as minor issues, including a liquid oxygen temperature concern and a manual valve that was left in the wrong configuration before teams evacuated the SLS launch pad.

NASA astronaut back on Earth after record-setting flight
NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei joined two Russian cosmonauts aboard a Soyuz spacecraft, undocked from the International Space Station and plunged back to Earth Wednesday, landing on the steppe of Kazakhstan to close out a U.S.-record 355-day stay in space.
VideoLive coverage: NASA astronaut returning home today with two Russian cosmonauts
NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, wrapping up nearly one year in orbit, rode a Russian Soyuz spaceship back to Earth on Wednesday with Russian commander Anton Shkaplerov and flight engineer Pyotr Dubrov. The crew returned home from the International Space Station and landed in Kazakhstan at 7:28 a.m. EDT (1128 GMT).

NASA astronaut, two cosmonauts set for Wednesday return to Earth
NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei, launched by Russia to the International Space Station aboard a Soyuz spacecraft last April, returns this week to a world torn by war in Ukraine and escalating superpower tension as he closes out a 355-day stay in orbit, the longest single flight by a U.S. astronaut.

NASA gives priority to Artemis ground test over commercial astronaut launch
NASA officials gave the green light Friday for the first all-commercial astronaut launch to the International Space Station on a SpaceX rocket as soon as April 3. But the astronaut launch could be delayed a day, or longer, to give priority to a countdown test for NASA's Space Launch System moon rocket on a neighboring launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center.

SpaceX’s new Dragon spaceship named ‘Freedom’
SpaceX's fourth human-rated Crew Dragon spacecraft has been named "Freedom" by the first team of astronauts who will ride it into orbit next month.

Astronauts complete spacewalk for space station maintenance and upgrades
Two astronauts floated outside the International Space Station Wednesday and installed refurbished ammonia jumpers in the lab's cooling system to bring it back up to full efficiency, replaced a high-definition camera and made power and data connections on a European experiment platform.

Soyuz carries three cosmonauts to station as Nelson touts cooperation
Three cosmonauts blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan Friday, caught up with the International Space Station after a two-orbit rendezvous and moved in for docking at a newly arrived Russian module. The cosmonauts are replacing three crew members -- two Russians and an American -- who are heading home at the end of the month to close out a record-setting flight.
VideoLive coverage: Russian cosmonauts launch on Soyuz rocket
An all-Russian crew of three cosmonauts launched Friday at 11:55 a.m. EDT (1555 GMT) from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, heading to orbit on a Soyuz rocket to begin a six-and-a-half month expedition on the International Space Station. The trio docked with the space station at 3:12 p.m. EDT (1912 GMT).