The inaugural space journey of Turkey‘s first astronaut, alongside a European crew, commenced from Florida, marking a significant milestone in the commercial space endeavors led by Axiom Space, a Texas-based startup.
The team, consisting of four members, embarked on their journey to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. The capsule was propelled by a Falcon 9 rocket from Nasa‘s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, initiating a 36-hour journey to the orbiting station.
The event was broadcasted live, showcasing the collaboration between Axiom and SpaceX.
The Crew Dragon, operating autonomously, is scheduled to dock with the ISS early Saturday. The ISS, orbiting approximately 250 miles above Earth, is currently home to seven regular crew members.
The launch was a spectacle, with the rocket ascending into the skies, leaving a trail of fiery exhaust. Inside, the crew was seen, calm and collected, in their pressurized cabin, donned in their flight suits.
Shortly after the launch, the Falcon 9’s upper stage successfully placed the crew capsule into its intended orbit. Flight commander Michael López-Alegría, in response to mission control’s congratulations, humbly credited the team effort, stating, “As I was saying, it’s a team sport. Thank you, guys.”
In a remarkable display of technology, the rocket’s lower stage, post-detachment, autonomously returned to Earth, landing near the launch site, a moment that was met with cheers from the control room.
This mission is Axiom’s third in two years, as the company continues to establish its presence in the space industry, offering seats to astronauts from various nations and private sectors, each seat costing upwards of $55 million.
The Axiom-3 mission’s agenda includes a two-week stay at the ISS, where the crew will engage in over 30 scientific studies, primarily focusing on spaceflight’s impact on human health and diseases.
The mission is not just a scientific endeavor but also a symbol of the increasing global interest in space exploration, with countries aiming to boost their international stature, military capabilities, and satellite communications.
Turkey, aspiring to join the ranks of nations participating in the ISS, sent Alper Gezeravci, a 44-year-old veteran of the Turkish Air Force, marking the country’s first human spaceflight. He is accompanied by Italian Air Force Colonel Walter Villadei, Swedish aviator Marcus Wandt, and López-Alegría, a seasoned astronaut with dual citizenship in Spain and the US, who also serves as an executive at Axiom.
This mission is touted as the first all-European commercial astronaut mission to the ISS.
Upon arrival, the crew is set to be greeted by the ISS’s current inhabitants, comprising astronauts from Nasa, Japan, Denmark, and cosmonauts from Russia.
In a previous mission, Axiom-2, Axiom had sent a diverse team, including the first Arab woman in orbit, to the ISS.
SpaceX, under Elon Musk’s leadership, provides the necessary launch vehicles and crew capsules for Axiom’s missions, similar to its contracts with Nasa, and also oversees the mission control from its base near Los Angeles.
While Nasa provides the launch site, it also takes over the responsibility for the astronauts post-docking with the ISS.
Axiom, a company with an eight-year history led by a former Nasa ISS program manager, is at the forefront of developing a commercial space station, envisioned as a successor to the aging ISS, which is anticipated to be decommissioned around 2030.
The team, consisting of four members, embarked on their journey to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. The capsule was propelled by a Falcon 9 rocket from Nasa‘s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, initiating a 36-hour journey to the orbiting station.
The event was broadcasted live, showcasing the collaboration between Axiom and SpaceX.
The Crew Dragon, operating autonomously, is scheduled to dock with the ISS early Saturday. The ISS, orbiting approximately 250 miles above Earth, is currently home to seven regular crew members.
The launch was a spectacle, with the rocket ascending into the skies, leaving a trail of fiery exhaust. Inside, the crew was seen, calm and collected, in their pressurized cabin, donned in their flight suits.
Shortly after the launch, the Falcon 9’s upper stage successfully placed the crew capsule into its intended orbit. Flight commander Michael López-Alegría, in response to mission control’s congratulations, humbly credited the team effort, stating, “As I was saying, it’s a team sport. Thank you, guys.”
In a remarkable display of technology, the rocket’s lower stage, post-detachment, autonomously returned to Earth, landing near the launch site, a moment that was met with cheers from the control room.
This mission is Axiom’s third in two years, as the company continues to establish its presence in the space industry, offering seats to astronauts from various nations and private sectors, each seat costing upwards of $55 million.
The Axiom-3 mission’s agenda includes a two-week stay at the ISS, where the crew will engage in over 30 scientific studies, primarily focusing on spaceflight’s impact on human health and diseases.
The mission is not just a scientific endeavor but also a symbol of the increasing global interest in space exploration, with countries aiming to boost their international stature, military capabilities, and satellite communications.
Turkey, aspiring to join the ranks of nations participating in the ISS, sent Alper Gezeravci, a 44-year-old veteran of the Turkish Air Force, marking the country’s first human spaceflight. He is accompanied by Italian Air Force Colonel Walter Villadei, Swedish aviator Marcus Wandt, and López-Alegría, a seasoned astronaut with dual citizenship in Spain and the US, who also serves as an executive at Axiom.
This mission is touted as the first all-European commercial astronaut mission to the ISS.
Upon arrival, the crew is set to be greeted by the ISS’s current inhabitants, comprising astronauts from Nasa, Japan, Denmark, and cosmonauts from Russia.
In a previous mission, Axiom-2, Axiom had sent a diverse team, including the first Arab woman in orbit, to the ISS.
SpaceX, under Elon Musk’s leadership, provides the necessary launch vehicles and crew capsules for Axiom’s missions, similar to its contracts with Nasa, and also oversees the mission control from its base near Los Angeles.
While Nasa provides the launch site, it also takes over the responsibility for the astronauts post-docking with the ISS.
Axiom, a company with an eight-year history led by a former Nasa ISS program manager, is at the forefront of developing a commercial space station, envisioned as a successor to the aging ISS, which is anticipated to be decommissioned around 2030.
