Elon Musk‘S SpaceX started axiom spaceThe Ax-2 mission to the International Space Station aboard a Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday. With the crew of four aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft named FreedomThe mission marks Dragon’s tenth manned spaceflight.
What happened: The Ax-2 mission approved by NASA, is now scheduled to arrive at the International Space Station on May 22 and dock with the space station at approximately 9:16 p.m. ET. Freedom will dock with the ISS for ten days, and the crew will conduct more than 20 research experiments in the meantime.
The mission’s crew of four will be led by a former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson. The other members are pilots John Shoffner and mission specialists Ali AlQarni And Rayyanah Barnawi from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).
“The 12-day voyage represents an important historic event for Saudi Arabia, but also for women around the world, as Rayyanah Barnawi is the first-ever Saudi Arabian astronaut to travel to space,” he said Saudi Space Commission said in a statement.
Why it matters: Ax-2 is that second private astronaut mission to the space station. It serves as a preparation for Axiom Space’s longer-term goal of having an operational Axiom station as the private successor to the ISS by 2028.
Meanwhile, the mission for SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, the first private spacecraft to bring humans to the space station, marks the tenth manned spaceflight. According to SpaceX, the spacecraft is capable of carrying up to seven passengers to and from Earth orbit and beyond.
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Continue reading: Elon Musk marvels at the test launch of the spaceship engine: “A hell of a plasma jet!”
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