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Axiom Mission 4
Private crewed spaceflight to the International Space Station in 2025 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Axiom Mission 4 (Ax‑4) is a planned private spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS) operated by Axiom Space in partnership with SpaceX and NASA.[1] The flight is scheduled to lift off from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center no earlier than June 8, 2025 at 13:11 UTC (9:11 am EDT, local time at the launch site) and will last about two to three weeks. It will use a SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket to place Crew Dragon C213 into low Earth orbit. This will be the maiden flight of the C213 spacecraft, the fifth—and potentially final—Crew Dragon to be built.[2][3]
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Crew
The crew of four consists of commander Peggy Whitson, an Axiom employee; pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Space Research Organisation; and mission specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, a European Space Agency project astronaut from Poland, and Tibor Kapu representing the Hungarian Space Office.[4] Shubhanshu Shukla will be the first of India's astronaut corps to fly to space.
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Countdown
There are 7 days, 23 hours, 24 minutes and 33 seconds until Liftoff of Ax-4. (refresh)
Gaganyaan
Ax‑4 represents a milestone for India’s Indian Human Spaceflight Programme, integrating with ISRO’s Gaganyaan initiative. While Gaganyaan remains India’s independent crewed program, Ax‑4 provides the first opportunity for an Indian astronaut—Shubhanshu Shukla—to fly on a commercial mission to the ISS. Shukla will conduct experiments developed by ISRO and Indian institutions, including studies of cognitive effects of screen use, microbial adaptation, muscle atrophy, and crop resilience in microgravity.[7][8]
Ignis
For Poland, Ax‑4 is the first crewed mission since 1978. The Polish Space Agency (POLSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have partnered on the Ignis mission for astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski. His payload suite includes experiments in technology and life sciences.[9][10][11] One experiment, the KP Labs Leopard Data Processing Unit, will demonstrate AI‑based data processing in orbit to reduce ground infrastructure requirements.[12]
The Ignis mission has its own patch, separate from the Axiom Mission 4 patch, depicting an eagle in the Polish colors whose wings trace the contours of the Orla Perć mountain range and a stylized depiction of the Scutum constellation (a tribute to Johannes Hevelius) over the mission's name, Ignis, the Latin word for fire.[13]
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HUNOR
Ax‑4 will also carry Hungary's first astronaut since the fall of the Soviet Union. Although Hungary is also part of the ESA, the HUNOR (short for HUNgarian to ORbit) mission was developed by the Hungarian Space Office (HSO) completely independent of the ESA.[14] HUNOR was first announced in 2021 and in July 2022 the Hungarian foreign ministry signed a preliminary deal with Axiom for the flight,[14] which was finalized in September 2023.[14] Tibor Kapu was selected from 247 applicants to fly on the mission, supported by backup astronaut Gyula Cserényi.[15] Kapu is a mechanical engineer and recreational skydiver, Cserényi is an electrical engineer and amateur steeplechase racer.[16] Both completed their NASA training in April 2025.[17] The HUNOR mission has its own patch, separate from the Axiom Mission 4 patch, depicting the Csodaszarvas and four stars representing the final astronaut candidates.[18]
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See also
References
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