- SpaceX astronauts from the Ax-1 ISS mission will return on Monday, NASA’s chief of spaceflight said.
- Bad weather has delayed the return of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.
- NASA said it did not expect the delay to affect another manned orbital mission on Wednesday.
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SpaceX astronauts returning from the International Space Station (ISS) will spend a day free-flying in orbit before diving into the atmosphere and landing in Florida waters, CNN reported.
Katie Luders, head of NASA’s space flight programs, said Friday that the spacecraft will aim to disembark from the ISS on Sunday.
The astronauts flew to the ISS on April 8 as part of the privately funded Axiom 1 mission, also known as Ax-1.
“We want about 2 days between the return of # Ax1 and the launch of Crew-4 for @NASA and @SpaceX to complete the data reviews and asset recovery stages. In this case, 39 hours between operations gives us enough time to complete the work. If necessary, we will adjust the launch of Crew-4 so that we are ready, “Luders said in a tweet.
Lueders also said the space agency was closely monitoring the time after the trip home was delayed by a week due to poor conditions.
The mission was supposed to last eight days, but the delay means the astronauts are expected to land on Monday.
NASA is planning another orbital flight with a SpaceX crew, called Crew-4, to launch on Wednesday. Lueders said the late return of the Ax-1 would not affect Crew-4’s launch date.
The Ax-1 includes a four-member crew on the first all-private flight aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft.
The commander of the mission is the president of Axiom and retired astronaut Michael Lopez-Allegria. The crew also includes entrepreneurs Larry Connor, Mark Patti and Eitan Stibe, who reportedly paid $ 55 million each for the flight.
Axiom is expected to launch a second trade mission to the ISS in late 2022 or spring 2023. Record astronaut Peggy Whitson will serve as commander and John Schoffner will act as pilot on the mission.
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