The third private mission was launched on Thursday, January 18, to the International Space Station (ISS) with four Europeans on board. This was reported by the American space agency NASA, UNN reports.
Details
The mission, called Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3), is the third organized by the American company Axiom Space. It is indicated that the launch took place at 16:49 local time (21:49 GMT) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Docking with the ISS is scheduled for 11.15 a.m. Italian time on Saturday, January 20.
The crew consists of four astronauts. The crew members this time include Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria (a former NASA astronaut), Air Force pilot Colonel Walter Villadei, and two mission specialists - Turkish citizen Alper Gözeravci (currently the first Turkish astronaut) and Swede Marcus Wandt from ESA.
The participants of the Ax-3 mission will join the seven people already aboard the flying laboratory: two American astronauts, a Dane, a Japanese, and three Russian cosmonauts.
It is also noted that representatives of Ax-3 are to spend about two weeks on the International Space Station (ISS), and they plan to conduct a series of scientific experiments - about 30 studies are preliminarily planned. For example, safe access to space and physiological aspects of staying in orbit are the topics of six experiments of the Italian Air Force.
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The flight is the responsibility of the American private company Axiom, which leased the Dragon capsule from SpaceX. The Falcon 9 rocket for the launch comes from Elon Musk's space company. The details of the various contracts, including the prices paid to Axiom Space for each seat, are not disclosed.
Recall
Recently, in early January, NASA successfully launched a lunar lander. This was the first time since 1972.
UNN reported that Lockheed Martin and NASA plan to introduce the X-59 aircraft, which is capable of flying at 1.5 times the speed of sound and reduced sound noise, which can reduce flight time.