SpaceX’s Crew-9 astronaut mission arriving at the International Space StationAfter multiple delays, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission finally launched two astronauts into space on Saturday from Cape Canaveral.

After their weeklong journey turned into a monthslong stay on the International Space Station, two Boeing Starliner astronauts will soon be united with the spacecraft that will eventually bring them home.

Eleven hours after successfully launching spacecraft to bring back two astronauts from the International Space Station, SpaceX announced future launches have been halted because of problem with second stage deorbiting.

The Crew-9 incident was the second Falcon 9 upper-stage issue to crop up in less than three months. On July 11, the rocket experienced a leak of liquid oxygen in its upper stage during the launch of 20 of SpaceX's Starlink internet satellites. As a result, the spacecraft were deployed too low and ended up being lost.

Because NASA rotates space station crews approximately every six months, this newly launched flight with two empty seats reserved for Wilmore and Williams won’t return until late February. Officials said there wasn’t a way to bring them back earlier on SpaceX without interrupting other scheduled missions.

A Dragon spacecraft lifted off from Florida on Saturday and is set to bring home two astronauts who've been stuck on the International Space Station for months.

Two astronauts were launched on a five-month mission that also hopes to rescue two NASA astronauts left behind on the ISS. The four are expected to return to Earth in February.

SpaceX on Saturday successfully launched its Crew 9 spacecraft from Space Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.