Breaking News:SpaceX Crew-12 mission latest news: It’s docking day for Dragon astronauts– What Just Happened

Tally ho! Here they come…

Crew-12 aboard the SpaceX Dragon “Freedom” initiated their approach to the International Space Station at 1:33 p.m. EST (1833 GMT).

Before the thruster burn, they got their first look at their destination and configured their audio to connect directly with NASA astronaut Chris Williams on the station.

“Station, Dragon on the Big Loop, how do you hear?” radioed Jessica Meir, Crew-12 commander.

“It is great to hear yur voice! I hear you loud and clear and see your from the Cupola,” replied Williams.

“We’ve got you loud and clear, too, Chris,” said Meir. “And we were incredibly excited to see the ISS through our docking port window before we even got started getting suited. Can’t wait to see you buddy.”

“You too. Really looking forward to seeing you guys here,” he responded.

A Valentine’s Day docking dawns

The next major event will be their arrival and docking at the International Space Station. Docking is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 14, at about 3:15 p.m. EST (2015 GMT). NASA’s live coverage for that will begin at 1:15 p.m. EST (1815 GMT), and you will be able to see it live on this page.

It will be a Valentine’s Day arrival for the new ISS crew.

NASA will hold a post launch press conference at 6:45 a.m. EST (1145 GMT). You can watch that live here:

Crew-12 Dragon nose cone opened for flight

The Crew-12 astronauts are now flying free on their way to the International Space Station, a journey that will take about 34 hours.

As they did just before launch, the four astronauts shared a message of inspiration and hope after reaching orbit.

“We’re reminded that we’re all connected,” one of the four astronauts said. “Take care of one another and keep reaching higher. That’s how human beings soar and how we make each other proud.”

The nose cone covering the Dragon capsule’s docking port has opened for flight.

Tariq Malik

Touchdown! Crew-12 Falcon 9 rocket lands, Dragon in orbit

A few things just happened in quick succession.

First, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 1st stage landed at Landing Pad 40 in a smooth touchdown at the company’s newest landing pad.

The upper stage then reached its target point and deployed the Dragon capsule carrying the four Crew-12 astronauts to their planned orbit. The Dragon capsule then floated free to begin a 2-day trip to the International Space Station.

“It turns out Friday the 13th is a very lucky day,” flight controllers radioed the Dragon crew as they wished them well.

“Thank you team, that was quite a ride, we have left the Earth, but the earth has not left us,” Crew-12 commander Jessica Meir said.

Tariq Malik

Stage separation for Crew-12 Falcon 9 rocket

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket has successfully separated its first stage from the upper stage for today’s Crew-12 launch. The first stage is returning to Earth for a planned landing at a new landing pad at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida about 8 minutes after liftoff.

So far, the flight is going smoothly.

“Dragon, SpaceX, nominal trajectory,” flight controllers told the astronauts.

“Dragon copies,” commander Jessica Meir said.

Tariq Malik

LIFTOFF! SpaceX launches Crew-12 astronauts

With a blinding light, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket lifted off on time from Space Launch Complex 40 to carry the four Crew-12 astronauts toward the International Space Station.

Tariq Malik

Crew-12 astronauts share inspiring message, strongback retracted

With just minutes remaining to liftoff, the four astronauts inside SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Freedom shared a brief, but inspiring message of unity and exploration from inside the capsule.

“In a few moments, we will leave the ground,but not the people who helped get us here,” Crew-12 commander Jessica Meir said. “This mission is a result of years of dedication, preparation, and trust to the teams, and also, every decision has led to this moment.”

Her crewmates each spoke as well on the value of international cooperation to continue work on the ISS.

Stage one fueling is complete with RP-1 and liquid oxygen. Stage 2 has completed topping off its liquid oxygen.

The strongback support has retracted for launch. We are minutes from liftoff.

Tariq Malik

Crew-12 Falcon 9 rocket first stage fueled for launch

Fueling is continuing in what SpaceX calls a “late load” approach to fuel the rocket in the final minutes before a planned liftoff. Stage 2 liquid oxygen loading is now underway

The Dragon Freedom capsule is one of five crewed Dragon capsules SpaceX uses for trips to and from the International Space Station.

“We’re tracking no holds against launch today,” flight controllers radioed to Dragon astronauts.

“Dragon copies, great news,” Crew-12 commander Jessica Meir said.

Tariq Malik

Crew-12’s Falcon 9 rocket is ‘go’ for fueling

Hatch closed on Crew-12 mission’s Dragon capsule

Crew-12 launch webcast has begun

Our Spaceflight Editor Mike Wall has the full guide here:

Watch SpaceX launch Crew-12 astronaut mission to the International Space Station early on Feb. 13

NASA’s Crew-12 launch webcast will begin at 3:15 a.m. EST (0815 GMT) on Friday, Feb. 13, with the launch itself scheduled for 5:15 a.m. EST (1015 GMT).

NASA and SpaceX report a pristine 90% chance of good conditions for the weather at Crew-12’s planned launch time of 5:15 a.m. EST (1015 GMT) on Feb. 13.

As I write this, we are less than 24 hours away from what will be two-day trip for NASA and SpaceX’s Crew-12 mission to the ISS. Yesterday, mission managers for SpaceX and NASA completed a Launch Readiness Review, at the end of which they cleared the Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft for launch.

Liftoff of Crew-12 is scheduled for 5:15 a.m. EST (1015 GMT), weather permitting. It will launch from SpaceX’s pad at Space Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, as the company no longer plans to use NASA’s own Pad 39A for Dragon crew launches.

The Crew-12 astronaut team is commanded by astronaut Jessica Meir, with Jack Hathaway serving as pilot. Both are NASA astronauts. Rounding out the crew are European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot of France and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedaev. They will fly an 8-month mission to the ISS.

Crew-12 is a replacement crew for Crew-11, a team of four astronauts who returned to Earth earier than planned last month in what was the first-ever medical evacuation of the space station. Meir and her Crew-12 crewmates were originally scheduled to launch sometime in March, but NASA and SpaceX moved the flight up after the early return of Crew-11.

Space.com’s Josh Dinner is on the scene for the relief crew’s launch and will br providing updates over the next day that I’ll share directly with you here.