The Axiom-4 mission, carrying India’s Shubhanshu Shukla and three others to the International Space Station, is now slated to be launched on Wednesday, June 25, around noon time in India. The mission has been delayed several times due to different reasons, including problems detected in the rocket, and leaks discovered at the destination, the International Space Station, where the astronauts are supposed to stay for two weeks. Bad weather has also contributed to the delay of the launch which was originally scheduled for the first week of June. The latest launch slot was announced by NASA on Tuesday morning. The mission is being managed and operated by Axiom Space, a private US company. It will use the Falcon 9 rocket and Crew Dragon spacecraft made by SpaceX, the world’s biggest private space entity. The mission is being carried out under the overall guidance of NASA which has been encouraging private missions to the space, including to the International Space Station, with the overall objective of building capabilities in the private sector. “The mission will lift off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center 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 (with the International Space Station) is approximately 7 a.m. Thursday, June 26 (4.30 pm in India),” NASA said in its new announcement. Apart from Shukla, the mission has astronauts from Poland, Hungary and the United States. The mission has planned more than 60 science experiments, studies and outreach activities during the two-week period.
