1 Oct 2026

Just moments ago, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 crew began the walk that every NASA astronaut has made since Apollo 7 in 1968, heading to the elevator and down through the double doors below the Neil A. Armstrong Building’s Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Before leaving the suit-up room, the crew completed one last tradition: a card game. Dating back to the space shuttle era, NASA crews play cards before leaving the crew quarters ahead of launch until the commander, in this case NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins, loses. It is hoped that by losing, the commander “burns off” bad luck, clearing the mission for only good luck.

The Crew-13 mission will fly aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft Grace, which made its maiden voyage to and from the International Space Station in 2025 as part of Axiom Space’s Axiom Mission 4.

In just a few moments, the crew members will say goodbye and receive well-wishes from their families and friends, then make their way to the customized electric crew transport vehicles to take them on the 20-minute journey to Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and their waiting spacecraft.

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NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 crew members prepare to depart the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for nearby Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station for launch of Crew-13 on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026.