Four Axiom Mission-2 Private Astronauts Arrive at International Space Station

The four Axiom Mission-2 crew members join the seven-member Expedition 69 crew aboard the station and gather together for a crew greeting ceremony. Credit: NASA TV

Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) astronauts Peggy Whitson, John Shoffner, Ali Alqarni, and Rayyanah Barnawi now are aboard the International Space Station (ISS) following Dragon’s hatch opening at 11 a.m. EDT Monday, May 22.

Ax-2 docked to the orbital complex at 9:12 a.m. on the second mission with an entirely private crew to arrive at the orbiting laboratory.

The Axiom Space crew are joining Expedition 69 crew members aboard station, including NASA astronauts Frank Rubio, Woody Hoburg, and Stephen Bowen, UAE (United Arab Emirates) astronaut Sultan Alneyadi, as well as Roscosmos cosmonauts Dmitri Petelin, Andrey Fedyaev, and Sergey Prokopyev.

Four spaceships are docked at the space station including the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour and Freedom crew ships and Roscosmos’ Soyuz MS-23 crew ship and Progress 83 resupply ship. Credit: NASA

Next up, the station crew members will take part in a welcome ceremony aboard the International Space Station.

Axiom Space astronauts are expected to depart the space station on May 30, pending weather, for a return to Earth and splashdown at a landing site off the coast of Florida.

The Ax-2 mission patch highlights the beauty of space, hope for the future, and the important role of the ISS to unite the best aspects of humanity. The Ax-2 patch is a classic triangular shape, which represents stability and power.   Credit: Axiom Space

The Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2) astronauts represent a new wave of space pioneers to broaden access to the International Space Station (ISS) and low-Earth orbit. This diverse, four-person team will conduct significant research aboard the ISS, exploring cutting-edge technologies while also acting as global ambassadors for the fields of science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics. Their dedicated work will form the foundation for the future development and operation of the Axiom Station — poised to become the world’s inaugural commercial space station.