Crew-12 will fly to the orbiting laboratory aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. NASA says it is reviewing options to move the launch earlier than its original target date of Sunday, Feb. 15.

NASA and SpaceX are proceeding ahead of schedule with their next astronaut launch to the International Space Station, which is currently operating with a skeleton crew.

With the early return of Crew-11, it is time for Crew-12 to be all set for next mission to the ISS.

SpaceX Crew-11 splashed down safely in the Pacific after more than five months in orbit aboard the International Space Station. The four astronauts completed over 140 experiments and traveled nearly 71 million miles around Earth.

After a Crew-11 member aboard the ISS developed a medical concern on Jan. 7, NASA officials accelerated their return home to Earth by about a month.

The next astronauts set to visit the space station will hold a news conference Friday afternoon in Houston. NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission could take off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station as soon as Feb.

Depending on the timing, NASA could launch a fresh crew to the space station while four other astronauts are flying around the moon.

A NASA video (above) reveals in great detail how its upcoming Artemis II mission is expected to play out. The space agency released the animation last year, but seeing that the Artemis II astronauts could be heading to the moon as early as February 6,