![SpaceX capsule, carrying four astronauts, docks with the International Space Station](https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/211110204156-05-spacex-crew-3-launch-111021-super-tease.jpg)
SpaceX capsule, carrying four astronauts, docks with the International Space Station
CNN
A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule carrying four astronauts approached the International Space Station, which orbits more than 200 miles above Earth, and made a gentle in-orbit meet-up, kicking off the astronauts' six-month stay at the space station.
This mission, called Crew-3, is the fourth mission in a partnership between SpaceX and NASA to make routine trips to the ISS in order to keep the 21-year-old space station adequately staffed. That's something NASA has wanted to have more control over since its Space Shuttle program retired in 2011, leaving Russia as the only country with the ability to provide ISS transportation.
The Crew-3 mission kicked off Wednesday night when the astronauts strapped into their Crew Dragon capsule as it sat atop one of SpaceX's 200-foot-tall Falcon 9 rockets on a launch pad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The rocket lifted off just after 9 pm ET, vaulting the capsule into orbit, before the spacecraft began to maneuver through orbit on its own and make its way toward the ISS.