A private space crew of four soared into orbit on Wednesday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The mission, brokered by Axiom Space, marks the fourth collaboration between the two companies and is the first time humans have flown to the International Space Station (I.S.S.) since multiple issues delayed the previous attempts.
The crew, led by retired NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, includes India’s Shubhanshu Shukla as pilot, Poland’s Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and Hungary’s Tibor Kapu as mission specialists. The trip marks their first government-sponsored flights in over 40 years.
The crew launched from a brand new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, designed for civil and commercial astronauts. After an initial delay due to weather and a leak on the I.S.S., the mission finally took off with all clear. The team will conduct research, including biology, material and physical sciences experiments, as well as technology demonstrations.
Whitson expressed her excitement about training alongside the new crew members and participating in microgravity activities. “Every crew brings something new to the table,” she said. “It’s been a joy to train alongside them, and I’m looking forward to seeing them in microgravity.”
The crew is scheduled to arrive at the I.S.S. in under a day and will conduct nearly 60 experiments during their 14-day stay. The Dragon spacecraft will remain docked at the station and be ready for the crew’s return splashdown off southern California.
SpaceX has launched humans into orbit 18 times, with this mission marking an important milestone in the company’s private spaceflight endeavors.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2025/06/25/nx-s1-5444796/axiom-space-ax-4-launch-iss