Expedition 73 welcomed Crew-11 in an early morning port visit at 3:46 a.m. EDT when the hatches between the International Space Station (ISS) and SpaceX Dragon spacecraft were opened, allowing for Crew-11 to transfer over to join the team on board the orbiting laboratory. The event was also live-streamed on NASA+ but returned shortly after for the welcome ceremony. The event was also made available on the NASA App, on various NASA social media accounts, and online at NASA. The successful turnover of Crew-11 is another part of a sustained international partnership in low Earth orbit operations.

Crew-11’s Seamless Arrival Highlights NASA’s Global Vision and Expanding Commercial Spaceflight Strategy

According to NASA’s official coverage, the hatch opening signified not only the physical arrival of Crew-11 but also a formal integration into the ISS team for Expedition 73. Crew members were greeted by Markus and Dr Derewonko, familiar faces from NASA’s social media platforms, who provided an exclusive look into the behind-the-scenes activities.

Among the objectives of global cooperation and long-term habitation on this mission are the support of scientific research, developing maintenance operations, and conducting earth observation studies. Boehler pointed to early development and testing of SpaceX’s operation, which is set up to fly NASA astronauts as well as broader commercial projects around flying private space ‘tourists’ to the station aboard Crew Dragon.

The site has been running videos live over the past weeks and provides a point of transparency via updates on its blog every week (and here on NASA+). This transition from Expedition 72 to 73 at NASA is about more than naming a mission; it marks the dawn of commercial partnerships taking over staying-on-board duties and sets up crew rotations for station oversight as the foundation of Artemis-era lunar orbit and deep space missions.