SpaceX successfully launched a crew of four astronauts from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday to the International Space Station.

The Falcon 9 rocket launch is the first step in a mission to bring home two astronauts — Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams — who have been stranded at the International Space Station for months.

NASA astronauts Anne McClain, commander, and Nichole Ayers, pilot, along with mission specialists JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov are the members of Crew-10 on the company's Dragon spacecraft.

An earlier planned launch on Wednesday was scrapped due to a launch pad problem.

It will take Crew-10 approximately 28 hours to reach the International Space Station, officials said during the launch Friday. Once they arrive, they will begin hundreds of experiments for a variety of materials and technology.

Wilmore and Williams have been at the International Space Station for nine months after Boeing's new Starliner capsule encountered major breakdowns in transit. The two-person crew was only supposed to be on board for about a week, but ultimately the Starliner capsule returned empty.