Private Astronaut Mission Undocking Waved Off – NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX Assessing

The SpaceX Dragon Endeavour crew ship is pictured docked to the Harmony module’s space-facing international docking adapter. Endeavour carried four Axiom Mission 1 astronauts, Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria, Pilot Larry Connor, and Mission Specialists Eytan Stibbe and Mark Pathy, to the International Space Station for several days of research, education, and commercial activities. Credit: NASA

NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX waved off the undocking opportunity of Axiom Mission 1 from the International Space Station on Tuesday, April 19, 2022, due to unfavorable weather conditions for return. The integrated NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX teams are continuing to assess the next best opportunity for return of the first private astronaut mission to the orbiting laboratory based on weather conditions and space station operations.

Most recently, the four-member private astronaut crew had been targeted to undock at about 10 p.m. Tuesday, April 19, to begin the journey back to Earth, with splashdown off the coast of Florida no earlier than approximately 3:24 p.m. EDT Wednesday, April 20. On Tuesday morning, NASA Commander Tom Marshburn and his six Expedition 67 flight engineers held a farewell ceremony for the four-member Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) crew.

In this illustration, a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft approaches the ISS for docking. Credit: NASA/SpaceX

Axiom Mission 1 (or Ax-1) is a privately funded and operated crewed mission to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission is operated by Axiom Space out of Axiom’s Mission Control Center MCC-A in Houston, Texas. The flight launched on April 8, 2022, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Axiom Mission 1 astronauts Michael Lopez Algeria, Larry Connor, Mark Pathy, and Eytan Stibbe docked to the zenith port of the International Space Station’s Harmony module on April 9, 2022, following a launch on April 8 on the Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The four crew members will conduct an eight-day mission living and working aboard the microgravity laboratory before undocking to return to Earth on April 17. This is the first spaceflight for Axiom Space and the first all-private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. Credit: NASA