A SpaceX rocket was successfully launched on Thursday on its third private mission to the International Space Station (ISS), carrying four individuals, including a Swede, an Italian, and the first Turk to journey into space.
The launch took place as scheduled at 4.49 pm local time (22:49 Belgian time) from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
The mission, known as Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) is the third organised by US company Axiom Space. The passengers, who trained for months, are scheduled to spend approximately two weeks on the ISS, where they will conduct a series of scientific experiments.
Axiom Space is not only offering space travel experiences to wealthy clients but is also now including individuals sponsored by national agencies on its flights. This mission showcases the growing role of the private sector in supporting the space ambitions of countries lacking their own manned space flight programme.
The preceding Ax-2 mission had already enabled two Saudi nationals, sponsored by their government, to spend time on the ISS. Among the crew members this time around is Alper Gezeravci, a fighter pilot who becomes the first Turk to reach the final frontier.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wished Gezeravci “good luck,” stating: “We view this mission as a symbol of an increasingly powerful and assertive Turkey.”
The crew also includes Swede, Marcus Wandt, who is supported by the European Space Agency (ESA).
ESA describes Wandt’s role as a ‘project astronaut,’ undertaking short-duration missions via a fixed-term contract, unlike full-time astronauts. Wandt has publicly thanked ESA for its boldness, vision and role in “strengthening Europe’s presence in space.”
The crew is completed by Italian Walter Villadei, a member of his country’s air force who has previously flown aboard a Virgin Galactic spacecraft, and Spanish-American Michael Lopez-Alegria, a former NASA astronaut and mission commander employed by Axiom Space. They will meet seven individuals already on board the ISS: two American astronauts, a Dane, a Japanese and three Russian cosmonauts.
The specifics of each contract, including the fees paid to Axiom Space for each seat, have not been publicly disclosed. These private missions are carried out in partnership with NASA, which charges Axiom Space for the use of the station.
For Axiom Space, these missions are a precursor to building its own space station, a plan encouraged by NASA, which intends to retire the ISS around 2030 and subsequently send its astronauts to private stations instead.
