This is an incredibly exciting time for human spaceflight with the third private mission, which is allowing many more countries to participate in the scientific research and technology development that we do onboard this orbiting laboratory," said station commander Mogensen, a European Space Agency astronaut.

"We have doubled the number of nationalities onboard the space station, going from four to eight, which I think is a great testament to the international collaboration. ... We look forward to the next two weeks, to an intense period of work on board the space station."

López-Alegría, making his sixth spaceflight -- his second as a private citizen -- thanked the station crew and presented astronaut pins to his three crewmates to mark their first trip to orbit.

"I want to thank all of you guys again for welcoming us aboard," López-Alegría said to the station crew. "I know that it's tough to have guests in your house, and we promise not to spill any red wine on your white carpet."

The Crew Dragon visit is SpaceX's fourth fully commercial flight carrying non-government researchers and private citizens to orbit, the third such flight to the International Space Station chartered by Houston-based Axiom Space.

During a planned 14-day stay aboard the station, the Ax-3 crew will carry out more than 30 microgravity experiments to learn more about the effects of weightlessness on a variety of physical and cognitive health and performance.

Space Research and Crew Changes on the International Space Station

Astronauts on the International Space Station are conducting various research projects and preparing for crew changes in the coming weeks.

Telemedicine and Smart Flight Suits

One of the research projects involves using telemedicine to evaluate the health of astronauts in space. This technology allows doctors on Earth to remotely monitor the astronauts' well-being. Another project focuses on testing a "smart flight suit" that aims to increase the comfort of astronauts and monitor their medical data.

Space Radiation Shielding

Additionally, a separate project is underway to test materials that can better shield astronauts from space radiation. This research is crucial for ensuring the safety of astronauts during long-duration space missions.

Crew Changes and Mission Ax-3

The Ax-3 mission marks the beginning of a busy period for the International Space Station. NASA and Roscosmos plan to send fresh astronauts and cosmonauts to replace five of the seven current residents and to swap out a Russian Soyuz ferry ship.

Upcoming Launches

In late February, cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin and three NASA astronauts are scheduled for launch from the Kennedy Space Center. They will dock at the Harmony module's forward port, which will be vacated by the Ax-3 crew.

Crew 7 and Return to Earth

After a short handover period, the Crew 7 astronauts will undock in early March and return to Earth. This will mark the end of their six-month stay on the International Space Station.

Source: NASA

On March 21, a spacecraft called Soyuz MS-25/71S will take off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. On board will be Oleg Novitskiy, a veteran cosmonaut, Marina Vasilevskaya, a guest flier from Belarus, and Tracy Dyson, a veteran from NASA.

If everything goes according to plan, Novitskiy, Vasilevskaya, and O'Hara will return to Earth on April 2 using the Soyuz MS-24/70S spacecraft, which was the same spacecraft that took Kononenko, Chub, and O'Hara into space last September.

Dyson will remain on the International Space Station (ISS) with Kononenko and Chub, who are spending a full year in space. Dyson will then join them for the return to Earth in September using the Soyuz MS-25/71S ferry ship.