NASA announces new launch date for Axiom-4 mission carrying India's Shubhanshu Shukla | Details
After six delays, SpaceX, Axion Space and NASA are now targeting a launch for tomorrow.
After six postponements, NASA has set a new launch date for the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station. As per the latest update Axiom Space, SpaceX and NASA are now aiming for a launch as early as Wednesday - June 25.
"NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX are targeting 2:31am EDT, Wednesday, June 25, for launch of the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 4," stated NASA.
Based on this statement, the astronaut group carrying India's Shubhanshu Shukla could take off at 12:10 PM IST on Wednesday.
The fourth Axiom mission is set to launch from NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
"The crew will travel to the orbiting laboratory on a new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft after launching on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket. The targeted docking time is approximately 7 a.m. Thursday, June 26. NASA will provide more details and its coverage information shortly," the space agency added further.
Axiom-4 mission postponed six times
The Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission to the International Space Station has been put on hold at least six times. The first launch date for the mission was set for May 29.
However, it was postponed to June 8 due to weather related issues. Later the date would change to June 10 and June 11 due to a liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon-9 rocket's booster.
After further evaluations, the launch was scheduled for June 19 and then changed to June 22 due to a technical fault in the space station’s service module.
After six delays, SpaceX, Axion Space and NASA are now targeting a launch for tomorrow.
What is the Axiom-4 mission?
The Axiom-4 mission is a private astronaut mission. The mission crew includes Dr Peggy Whitson from the United States as mission commander, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, and Tibor Kapu from Hungary as mission specialists, and Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla as the designated pilot.
