The Axiom 1 mission is delayed and astronauts will spend a few extra hours aboard the ISS.
According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Dragon Endeavour spacecraft has been delayed due to unfavorable weather at the splashdown location for the recovery of the crew.
The agency said in the blog post the, “Weather permitting, the four-member private astronaut crew now is targeted to undock at about 10 p.m. Tuesday, April 19, to begin the journey home with splashdown off the coast of Florida no earlier than approximately 3:24 p.m. EDT Wednesday, April 20.”
The hatch closure is set for 8 p.m. ET, and coverage for the unlocking begins at 9:45 p.m. ET.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration said that teams would continue to monitor the weather at the splashdown sites prior to unlocking.
The four Ax-1 astronauts – the first-ever fully private crewed mission to ISS – launched on April 8 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The mission, commanded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration astronaut Michael López-AlegrÃa – included three paying crewmembers: Larry Connor, Mark Pathy and Eytan Stibbe.
They reportedly paid about $55,000,000 for each seat.
“The Ax-1 mission represents both a culmination of NASA’s efforts to foster a commercial market in low-Earth orbit and the beginning of a new era of space exploration that enables more people to fly on more kinds of missions. This partnership is changing the arc of human spaceflight history by opening access to low-Earth orbit and the International Space Station to more people, more science and more commercial opportunities,” NASA said.
