Civilian astronauts travel to the International Space Station

NASA announced on May 10 (local time) that it has approved the world’s first civilian astronaut flight mission for AxiomSpace. Accordingly, four civilian astronauts will travel to the International Space Station with the aim of January 2022.

Axiomspace is a private space development company founded in 2016. It is trying to build a commercial space station that can be navigated freely. The company and NASA signed a Space Act Agreement in 2016, and accordingly, they have planned flights to the international space station by private space travel agencies.

The project, commonly referred to as Axiom Mission 1 AX-1, first launches four civilian astronauts from the Kennedy Space Center and sends them to the International Space Station. In this case, the rocket developed by SpaceX will be used. After docking, the crew stays in the ISS laboratory for 8 days to investigate and study health conditions in space, and conduct space education activities. Also, when returning, he brings a scientific sample prepared by NASA.

Participating in this mission is the original astronaut Michael López-Alegría, American investors Larry Connor and Mark Pathy, and Israeli investor Eytan Stibbe. They will receive training on launch from the summer.

It is the world’s first attempt for civilians to go to space. If successful, commercial manned spaceflight services can grow significantly. At this stage, no detailed schedule has been announced other than the schedule for January 2022, but it is noteworthy. Related information can be found here.