Successful Axiom 3 Launch Puts Private Astronauts on Path to International Space Station

by Linda Grimm | 2024-01-18

Four private astronauts are enroute to the International Space Station following the launch of Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) on Thursday, January 18, 2024. The astronauts lifted off at 3:49 p.m. CST from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

A group of four male astronauts pose for a photo in their dark blue flight suits against a black backdrop. — Crew members for the third private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3), left to right: Mission Specialist Marcus Wandt, Commander Michael López-Alegría, Pilot Walter Villadei, and Mission Specialist Alper Gezeravci. **Credit: Axiom Space**

The Ax-3 crew is commanded by Axiom Space’s chief astronaut and former NASA astronaut Michael López-Alegría, who also led Axiom Mission 1, the first private astronaut mission to the space station. During his time at NASA, López-Alegría flew on three space shuttle missions and commanded International Space Station Expedition 14. He holds NASA’s records for the most spacewalks and the most time spent conducting spacewalks. He was also inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2020.

Walter Villadei of Italy is the Ax-3 pilot. He previously served as mission lead for Virgin Galactic’s Unity 23 flight. Alper Gezeravci of Turkey and ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Marcus Wandt of Sweden are the mission specialists. Their selection for the crew makes Ax-3 the first commercial mission for an ESA-sponsored astronaut and the first spaceflight for a Turkish astronaut.

Brightly lit photo of a rocket launching in the late afternoon. — Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3), the third all private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, lifts off at 3:49 p.m. CST on Thursday, Jan. 18, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. **Credit:** ***NASA***

Once aboard the station, the Ax-3 crew will be welcomed by Expedition 70 crew members, including NASA astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara, ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japanese Exploration Aerospace Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscomos cosmonauts Konstantin Borisov, Oleg Kononenko, and Nikolai Chub.

The private astronauts plan to spend about 14 days aboard the orbiting laboratory implementing a mission comprised of science, outreach, and commercial activities. They are expected to conduct more than 30 different experiments during their mission, with a focus on understanding the effects of spaceflight on the human body and advancing health and medical research that may benefit people back on Earth.

The Ax-3 crew is expected to depart the space station on February 3, pending weather, for a return to Earth and splashdown at a landing site off the coast of Florida.

Learn how NASA is fostering a robust commercial low Earth orbit economy at: https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/commercial-space/