VIDEO: SpaceX crew-11 docks at international space station, begins six-month mission

Four astronauts from the US, Japan, and Russia successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Saturday, marking the start of their six-month science expedition.

The Crew-11 team lifted off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, August 1, after a one-day weather delay.

The crew, consisting of NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, will conduct research on the orbiting laboratory, including studies on stem cells and plant biology.

The arrival temporarily brings the total number of people on the station to 11. The Crew-10 mission, which has been in space since March, is expected to return to Earth next week.