Following multiple postponements, Nasa declared on Tuesday that the Ax-4 mission, which includes Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, is set to launch on June 25.
Axiom Space’s fourth astronaut mission to the ISS is now set to launch no earlier than 2:31 a.m. At 0631 GMT on Tuesday, June 25, NASA announced on Monday night. The launch is scheduled to occur from Launch Complex 39A at Florida’s Kennedy Space Center.
The Ax-4 mission’s launch, originally planned for May 29, has faced numerous delays caused by technical problems, weather factors, and leaks on the International Space Station (ISS).
The delay stemmed from worries regarding an existing leak in the Zvezda module, which was constructed in Russia. Although the leak is not recent, alterations in pressure measurements sparked safety worries last week. NASA and Axiom delayed the launch until conditions improved. The latest announcement did not provide any update on the leak status.
ALSO READ: Major Drug Bust in Imphal Valley Shakes Ethnic Narrative
Peggy Whitson to lead the mission
The Ax-4 team will travel in a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft attached to a Falcon 9 rocket. Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut and currently Axiom’s director of human spaceflight, will lead the two-week mission.
She will guide three novice astronauts: Shubhanshu Shukla from India, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and Tibor Kapu from Hungary. All three will be the inaugural representatives from their nations to travel to the ISS.
Should the launch go according to schedule, the Dragon capsule is anticipated to connect with the ISS at approximately 7:00 a.m. EDT (1100 GMT) on Thursday, June 26th. The launch and docking will be broadcast live on Space.com for public watching.
The team will journey to the orbiting research facility aboard a new SpaceX Dragon vehicle following a launch on the firm’s Falcon 9 rocket.
