NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins just made history as the first Black woman to command a crew into orbit. She led SpaceX Crew-13 on a Falcon 9 launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on October 1, 2026, alongside NASA’s Luke Delaney, the Canadian Space Agency’s Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov.
The crew reached the International Space Station in seven hours and 55 minutes, the fastest trip by a U.S. spacecraft. Watkins is no stranger to milestones. In 2022, she became the first Black woman to join an extended ISS mission, and she started her NASA career as an intern before becoming a geologist and astronaut.
Crew-13 will spend its time running science experiments and station maintenance while Crew-12 prepares to return to Earth. Watkins summed up the moment simply, saying the trip is short but the journey to get here has been long. What milestone would you love to see broken next?
About the Author
Local Lawton
Local Lawton is a contributor to LocalBeat, covering local news and community stories.