Sophie Adenot, the first French woman to go into space in 25 years, arrived at the ISS on Saturday with three other astronauts after 34 hours of flight. A welcome ceremony will follow with the American Christopher Williams and the Russians Sergei Koud-Svertchkov and Sergei Mikaïev, already present on the International Space Station, before a security briefing.

Published on: 02/14/2026 - 10:59 p.m. Modified on: 02/15/2026 - 10:52 a.m.

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The return of a French woman to space after 25 years. Astronaut Sophie Adenot joined the International Space Station (ISS) on Saturday February 14, with two Americans and a Russian, for a mission of approximately eight months.

At the end of some 34 hours of travel, the vessel launched on Friday by a SpaceX rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida, docked with the ISS, located 400 kilometers from Earth, at 8:15 p.m. GMT, according to NASA's live broadcast.

“I am proud to take France and Europe on this incredible adventure that goes beyond borders. Count on me to share all the stages with you and make the stars shine in the eyes of the French,” launched Sophie Adenot shortly after.

See also Sophie Adenot, the French astronaut conquering space

The second French woman to become an astronaut and the 84th woman in space of all nationalities, she made her first space flight at the age of 43. Alongside him were US space agency astronauts Jessica Meir, 48, and Jack Hathaway, 43, and Russian Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrei Fedyaev, 44.

Once docking is complete, it takes approximately two hours before the hatches allowing entry to the ISS can be opened, according to NASA. A welcome ceremony will follow with the American Christopher Williams and the Russians Sergei Koud-Svertchkov and Sergei Mikaïev, already present on the International Space Station, before a security briefing.

“Let's take care of each other, let's dare to dream big together and let's continue to aim ever higher. This is how humanity progresses,” said Sophie Adenot, in English, during a video broadcast of the takeoff, postponed for two days due to bad weather conditions.

“We are here for Sophie”

At the Cité des Sciences in Paris, a few hundred people applauded the crossing by the crew called Crew-12 of the 100 km altitude, which marks the beginning of space according to international convention.

Confiding his "raw emotion", Belgian astronaut Raphaël Liégeois, present during this broadcast, told AFP of his "pride" at seeing his classmate, Sophie Adenot, "leading the way".

In Toulouse (south-west), stronghold of the French space agency (Cnes), several hundred people gathered at the Cité de l'espace. “We are here for Sophie, to witness the emotion and intensity of the takeoff,” explained Frédérique Rossignol, 68, in the middle of the crowd.

Also read: For French astronaut Sophie Adenot, a busy scientific program in the ISS

A trained engineer and former test pilot, Sophie Adenot is only the second French woman to go into space, after pioneer Claudie Haigneré in 1996 and 2001. It was a flight by the latter that gave her "the trigger" when she was 14, she recently confided. “That’s when I said to myself: ‘one day that will be me’.” Having become his mentor, Claudie Haigneré traveled to Florida for takeoff.

Sophie Adenot was also encouraged remotely by President Emmanuel Macron in a video broadcast on the social network X and in which various personalities appear, including French astronaut Thomas Pesquet. The latter, appreciated for his good nature, revived the general public's interest in space during two stays on the ISS, in 2016-2017 and in 2021.

With her comrades, she should return to Earth in October.

With AFP

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