The SpaceX rocket has blasted off for the International Space Station in a rescue mission to free Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams - and replace them with fresh astronauts

Barely a month after flaming rocket debris rained down on the Turks and Caicos, SpaceX is conducting another test flight of its mammoth Starship, this time hoping to release mock satellites safely into space.

The two astronauts who crewed the Boeing Starliner have greeted their replacements, who arrived Saturday night at the International Space Station.

NASA astronauts Sunita Williams, Nick Hague, Barry Wilmore, and Donald Pettit unbox Thanksgiving meals, from the International Space Station (ISS), in this screen grab taken from a handout video, released on November 26,

The four newcomers — representing the U.S., Japan and Russia — will spend the next few days learning the station's ins and outs.

The replacements for NASA’s two stuck astronauts launched to the International Space Station on Friday night, paving the way for the pair’s return after nine long months. Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams need SpaceX to get this relief team to the space station before they can check out.