SpaceX's Crew-5 astronaut launch amazing photos

Liftoff!

SpaceX launched the Crew-5 astronaut mission for NASA on Oct. 5, 2022 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The four crewmembers heading to the International Space Station for a five-month stay are NASA's Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, Japan's Koichi Wakata and cosmonaut Anna Kikina. 

Mann is the first Native American woman to reach space, and Kikina is the first Russian to fly with SpaceX.

Read more: NASA's SpaceX Crew-5 astronauts ready for historic mission

Into the blue

Crew-5's Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule climb into the Florida sky shortly after lifting off on Oct. 5, 2022.

Coming down and going up

The Crew-5 Falcon 9 first stage returns to Earth (left) while the upper stage powers its way to orbit (right) on Oct. 5, 2022.

Rocket landing!

The Crew-5 Falcon 9 first stage comes down for a successful landing on the SpaceX droneship Just Read the Instructions on Oct. 5, 2022.

Spacecraft separation

The Crew-5 Dragon capsule, named Endurance, separates from its Falcon 9 upper stage about 12 minutes after liftoff on Oct. 5, 2022.

In zero-g

The Crew-5 astronauts enjoy their first taste of microgravity on Oct. 5, 2022.

Going to the pad

The Crew-5 astronauts — from left to right, NASA's Josh Cassada and Nicole Mann, Japan's Koichi Wakata and Roscosmos cosmonaut Anna Kikina — head to the launch pad ahead of liftoff on Oct. 5, 2022.

Crew-5 hardware on the pad

The Crew-5 Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon capsule stand atop Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida shortly after rolling out on Oct. 1, 2022.

Beauty shot

Another shot of the Crew-5 vehicles on the pad shortly after rollout.

Crew-5 astronauts arrive at KSC

From left to right: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata, NASA’s Nicole Mann and Josh Cassada, and cosmonaut Anna Kikina wave on Oct. 1, 2022, after arriving at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center ahead of SpaceX’s Crew-5 mission launch.

Official Crew-5 portrait

The official crew portrait for SpaceX's Crew-5 mission. From left are Anna Kikina, mission specialist; Josh Cassada, pilot; Nicole Mann, spacecraft commander; and Koichi Wakata, mission specialist.

Training at SpaceX HQ

The SpaceX Crew-5 astronauts are suited up and ready to participate in a crew equipment interface test (CEIT) at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, on Aug. 13, 2022.