Expedition 72

Expedition 72
	Picture of the International Space Station where the Expedition 72 will take place.
Mission type	Long-duration expedition
Operator	NASA / Roscosmos
Expedition
Space station	International Space Station
Began	24 September 2024
Ended	March 2025
Arrived aboard	Boeing Crew Flight Test; Soyuz MS-26; SpaceX Crew-9; Soyuz MS-27; SpaceX Crew-10;
Departed aboard	Soyuz MS-26; SpaceX Crew-9;
Crew
Crew size	7–11
Members	Expedition 70/71/72:; Matthew Dominick; Michael Barratt; Jeanette Epps; Alexander Grebenkin; Expedition 71/72:; Barry E. Wilmore; Sunita Williams; Aleksey Ovchinin; Ivan Vagner; Donald Pettit; Expedition 72:; Nick Hague; Aleksandr Gorbunov; Expedition 72/73:; Anne McClain; Nichole Ayers; Takuya Onishi; Kirill Peskov; Sergey Ryzhikov; Alexey Zubritsky; Jonny Kim;
	; Expedition 72 mission patch Expeditions ← Expedition 71 Expedition 73 →

Expedition 72 is the 72nd long-duration expedition to the International Space Station (ISS). The expedition is expected to begin with the departure of Soyuz MS-25 on 24 September 2024 and will be led by Sunita Williams, her second time serving as commander of the ISS.^[1]

Expedition 72 will continue the extensive scientific research conducted aboard the ISS, focusing on various fields, including biology, human physiology, physics, and materials science. The crew members will also maintain and upgrade the space station systems.

Background, Crew, and Events

Initially, the expedition will consist of Roscosmos cosmonauts Aleksey Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner, and Aleksandr Gorbunov, and NASA astronauts Barry E. Wilmore, Sunita Williams, Donald Pettit, and Nick Hague.

Wilmore and Williams arrived at the station on 6 June 2024 for what was expected to be a brief visit as part of the Boeing Crew Flight Test mission. However, their spacecraft experienced technical issues and returned to Earth uncrewed, and Wilmore and Williams were added to the Expedition 71/72 crew.^[2]

Ovchinin, Vagner, and Pettit arrived at the station on 11 September aboard Soyuz MS-26.^[3]^[4] Hague and Gorbunov are expected to arrive to the station on 25 September aboard SpaceX Crew-9.^[5]

In February 2025, SpaceX Crew-10 will arrive, transporting NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov.^[6]

Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky, along with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, are expected to arrive at the station aboard Soyuz MS-27 in March 2025.^[7]

Expedition 72 will come to a close in March 2025 when Hague, Wilmore, Williams, and Gorbunov depart on Crew-9 and Ovchinin, Vagner, and Pettit depart on Soyuz MS-26.

Crew

Flight	Crew member	Increment 72a	Increment 72b	Increment 72c	Increment 72d	Increment 72e	Increment 72f
Flight	Crew member	24-25 Sep 2024 (planned)	25 Sep-1 Oct 2024 (planned)	1 Oct 2024-Feb 2025 (planned)	Feb-Feb 2025 (planned)	Feb-Mar 2025 (planned)	Mar-Mar 2025 (planned)
Soyuz MS-26	Aleksey Ovchinin, Roscosmos Third^[a] spaceflight	Flight Engineer
	Ivan Vagner, Roscosmos Second spaceflight	Flight Engineer
	Donald Pettit, NASA Fourth spaceflight	Flight Engineer
SpaceX Crew-8	Matthew Dominick, NASA First spaceflight	Flight Engineer		Off Station
	Michael Barratt, NASA Third spaceflight	Flight Engineer		Off Station
	Jeanette Epps, NASA First spaceflight	Flight Engineer		Off Station
	Alexander Grebenkin, Roscosmos First spaceflight	Flight Engineer		Off Station
Boeing Crew Flight Test	Barry E. Wilmore, NASA Third spaceflight	Flight Engineer				Off Station
Boeing Crew Flight Test	Sunita Williams, NASA Third spaceflight	Commander				Off Station
SpaceX Crew-9 (planned)	Nick Hague, NASA Second^[a] spaceflight	Off Station	Flight Engineer			Off Station
SpaceX Crew-9 (planned)	Aleksandr Gorbunov, Roscosmos First spaceflight	Off Station	Flight Engineer			Off Station
SpaceX Crew-10 (planned)	Anne McClain, NASA Second spaceflight	Off Station			Flight Engineer
	Nichole Ayers, NASA First spaceflight	Off Station			Flight Engineer
	Takuya Onishi, JAXA Second spaceflight	Off Station			Flight Engineer
	Kirill Peskov, Roscosmos First spaceflight	Off Station			Flight Engineer
Soyuz MS-27 (planned)	Sergey Ryzhikov, Roscosmos Third spaceflight	Off Station					Flight Engineer
	Alexey Zubritsky, Roscosmos First spaceflight	Off Station					Flight Engineer
	Jonny Kim, NASA First spaceflight	Off Station					Flight Engineer

Notes

^ ^a ^b Not counting the aborted flight of Soyuz MS-10.

References

^ Foust, Jeff (13 September 2024). "Starliner astronauts adjust to long-term ISS stay". SpaceNews. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
^ Taveau, Jessica (24 August 2024). "NASA Decides to Bring Starliner Spacecraft Back to Earth Without Crew". NASA. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
^ "NASA Astronaut Don Pettit, Crewmates Arrive at Space Station".
^ Donaldson, Abbey A. (27 March 2024). "NASA Astronaut Don Pettit to Conduct Science During Fourth Mission - NASA". NASA. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
^ Donaldson, Abbey A. (30 August 2024). "NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Changes Ahead of September Launch". NASA. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
^ Taveau, Jessica (1 August 2024). "NASA Shares its SpaceX Crew-10 Assignments for Space Station Mission". NASA. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
^ Doyle, Tiernan P. (28 August 2024). "NASA Assigns Astronaut Jonny Kim to First Space Station Mission". NASA. Archived from the original on 30 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2024.

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[SoyuzMS10-8] Not counting the aborted flight of Soyuz MS-10.

[1] Foust, Jeff (13 September 2024). "Starliner astronauts adjust to long-term ISS stay". SpaceNews. Retrieved 15 September 2024.

[2] Taveau, Jessica (24 August 2024). "NASA Decides to Bring Starliner Spacecraft Back to Earth Without Crew". NASA. Retrieved 24 August 2024.

[3] "NASA Astronaut Don Pettit, Crewmates Arrive at Space Station".

[4] Donaldson, Abbey A. (27 March 2024). "NASA Astronaut Don Pettit to Conduct Science During Fourth Mission - NASA". NASA. Retrieved 30 August 2024.

[5] Donaldson, Abbey A. (30 August 2024). "NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Changes Ahead of September Launch". NASA. Retrieved 30 August 2024.

[6] Taveau, Jessica (1 August 2024). "NASA Shares its SpaceX Crew-10 Assignments for Space Station Mission". NASA. Retrieved 5 August 2024.

[7] Doyle, Tiernan P. (28 August 2024). "NASA Assigns Astronaut Jonny Kim to First Space Station Mission". NASA. Archived from the original on 30 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2024.

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