SpaceX delays crewed Axiom Mission 3 rocket launch from Florida
SpaceX crews are working to launch four astronauts from Florida’s Space Coast.
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Update:
SpaceX has confirmed it is delaying its planned Axiom 3 launch to Thursday.
The launch was originally planned for Wednesday at 5:11 p.m.
The new launch time is not set for Thursday at 4:49 p.m.
Now targeting Thursday, January 18 for launch of the Ax-3 mission to the @space_station. The additional time allows teams to complete pre-launch checkouts and data analysis on the vehicle → https://t.co/bJFjLCiTbK pic.twitter.com/ZL8664RN7D
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) January 17, 2024
SpaceX said the delay is needed for additional time to “complete pre-launch checkouts and data analysis on the vehicle.”
Channel 9 will continue to moniter the planned launch and provide updates on Eyewitness News.
Original Report:
The third private astronaut mission to the station, Axiom Mission 3 is scheduled to liftoff Wednesday.
It will take off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 5:11 p.m. EST.
Ax-3 will be the first all-European commercial astronaut mission to the ISS.
Read: Gigi, the Teddy Bear, makes 2nd to space, hopes to inspire kids and space exploration
The crew will conduct more than 30 experiments during their 14 days aboard the space station.
The mission is also bringing Axiom Space closer to creating its own commercial space station.
Read: Next crewed space flight, Axiom Mission 3, is set to launch from Space Coast in January
It will be known as Axiom Station.
The Ax-3 crewmembers are Commander Michael López-Alegría of the U.S. and Spain, Pilot Walter Villadei of the Italian Air Force, and Mission Specialists Alper Gezeravcı of Türkiye and Marcus Wandt of Sweden and the European Space Agency.
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