.jpg) Launch of Ax-3 on a Falcon 9 rocket | |
| Names | Ax-3 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Private spaceflight to theISS |
| Operator | |
| COSPAR ID | 2024-014A |
| SATCATno. | 58815 |
| Website | www |
| Mission duration | 21 days, 15 hours, 41 minutes |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Crew Dragon Freedom |
| Spacecraft type | Crew Dragon |
| Manufacturer | SpaceX |
| Launch mass | 12,519 kg (27,600 lb) |
| Landing mass | 9,616 kg (21,200 lb) |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 4 |
| Members | |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 18 January 2024, 21:49:11 (2024-01-18UTC21:49:11Z) UTC (5:49:11 pm EST)[1] |
| Rocket | Falcon 9 Block 5 (B1080.5),Flight 291 |
| Launch site | Kennedy,LC‑39A |
| Contractor | SpaceX |
| End of mission | |
| Recovered by | MV Shannon |
| Landing date | 9 February 2024, 13:30 (2024-02-09UTC13:31Z) UTC (8:30 am EST) |
| Landing site | Atlantic Ocean, nearDaytona Beach, Florida (29°48′N80°42′W / 29.8°N 80.7°W /29.8; -80.7) |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Inclination | 51.66° |
| Docking withISS | |
| Docking port | Harmony forward |
| Docking date | 20 January 2024, 10:42 UTC[2] |
| Undocking date | 7 February 2024, 14:20 UTC |
| Time docked | 18 days, 3 hours, 38 minutes |
  Left: Axiom mission patch Right: Wandt's Muninn mission patch .jpg) From left:López-Alegría,Wandt,Gezeravcı andVilladei, in black jumpsuits | |
Axiom Mission 3 (orAx-3) was aprivate spaceflight to theInternational Space Station. The flight launched on 18 January 2024,[1] and lasted for 21 days, successfully splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean.[3] It was operated byAxiom Space and used aSpaceXCrew Dragon spacecraft.[4] The booster, B1080, had previously flown Axiom-2, among other high-profile missions.[5]
TheSwedish component of Ax-3 would be theMuninn mission withMarcus Wandt as the first ESA astronaut launched by a private space provider.[6] Wandt was also the first member of the2022 European Space Agency Astronaut Group to receive a spaceflight mission.[7] The mission's name comes from one ofOdin's two ravens that together combined symbolize the human mind with Danish astronautAndreas Mogensen being launched as part of theHuninn mission onSpaceX Crew 7.[8] This was the first time that two Scandinavians were in space at the same time.[6] Wandt conducted 20 experiments and participated in five educational programs from understanding the effects of space habitat designs on astronaut stress levels to exploring cellular structure changes and gene expression in microgravity.[6] The mission's patch shows Muninn gliding around Earth to share the knowledge collected by Wandt.[8] The dark blue circle represents Earth and includes lighter lines depicting Sweden.[8]
All four crewmembers have backgrounds as military pilots.[9]Michael López-Alegría was the commander as an employee of Axiom;Walter Villadei from theItalian Air Force was the mission pilot.[10] The mission specialists wereAlper Gezeravcı who was the first astronaut fromTurkey;[11][12] and Swedish project astronautMarcus Wandt.[7]
| Position | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander |  /  Michael López-Alegría,Axiom SpaceSixth spaceflight | |
| Pilot |  Walter Villadei,AMSecond spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 1 |  Alper Gezeravcı,TUAOnly spaceflight | |
| Mission Specialist 2 |  Marcus Wandt,SNSA / ESAOnly spaceflight | |
| Position | Astronaut | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Peggy Whitson,Axiom Space | |
| Mission Specialist | Tuva Cihangir Atasever,TUA | |
The crew lifted off on a Falcon 9 fromLC-39AFlorida to dock with the International Space Station for an intended mission duration of approximately two weeks.[13] Final mission duration was 21 days; mission ended with a splashdown into the Atlantic Ocean on 9 February 2024.
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See also:ISS expeditions,Uncrewed ISS flights | ||
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