SpaceX set to launch four astronauts on private mission to space station
SpaceX set to launch four astronauts on private mission to space station
The launch was set for Tuesday but the strong winds along Florida's coastline resulted in a one-day postponement.
SpaceX space mission update: A SpaceX ISS mission will launch four crew members to the International Space Station on Wednesday.
The Houston-based company Axiom Space has scheduled their flight to launch at 8 a.m. The SpaceX private launch site is NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida operating under Eastern Time. A SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule will carry its four-member crew into orbit mounted on top of a Falcon 9 rocket.
NASA will begin broadcasting the SpaceX astronaut launch live on NASA+ starting at 7:05 a.m. ET on NASA+.
High winds along the Florida coast made it necessary to postpone the scheduled Tuesday launch by one day. Ax-4 will operate for approximately two weeks while onboard the International Space Station.
Retired NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson who holds the American record for most days spent in space at 675 days will lead the mission. The mission will include pilot Shubhanshu Shukla who is an astronaut from the Indian Space Research Organization alongside mission specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski the Polish scientist with the European Space Agency and mission specialist Tibor Kapu who is a mechanical engineer from Hungary.
The International Space Station will witness Shukla from India, Uznański-Wiśniewski from Poland and Kapu from Hungary as the first individuals from these nations to both live and work there.
The Ax-4 crew will carry out numerous scientific experiments during their two-week stay at the space station according to NASA which will include research on muscle regeneration and growth patterns of sprouts and edible microalgae in microgravity conditions as well as studies on survival mechanisms of small aquatic organisms aboard the ISS.
The four Private astronauts to ISS at the space station Thursday afternoon at approximately 12:30 p.m. ET.
SpaceX crew launch 2025 its fourth crewed mission to the International Space Station with their upcoming flight. In 2022, the company executed its initial private mission to the ISS with a crew made up entirely of civilians.
The Ax-4 mission cost remains undisclosed but earlier Axiom Space flights reportedly cost space tourists $55 million per seat.
