SpaceX successfully launches Falcon 9 crew to International Space Station

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sits on Kennedy Space Center's Launch Pad 39-A Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. Four astronauts are scheduled to lift off later this afternoon to the International Space Station. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara) (Chris O'Meara, Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

On Wednesday at 4:49 p.m., SpaceX successfully launched Falcon 9′s Axiom Space Mission 3 to the International Space Station from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

According to a release from Axiom, this mission is a pivotal step along the journey toward Axiom Station, the world’s first commercial space station and successor to the ISS. Ax-3 is breaking down historical, and institutional barriers and redefining access to space for an entire region of the world.

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Three countries – Italy, Turkey, Sweden – along with the European Space Agency (ESA), have united for Ax-3 to become the first, all-European commercial astronaut mission to the ISS, and, in doing so, are boldly positioning their governments and space agencies as future leaders and customers in low-Earth orbit (LEO) post-ISS.

The crew will conduct more than 30 scientific experiments and demonstrations focused on human physiology and technological industrial advancements.

The crew includes:

  • Michael Lopez-Alegria, United States and Spain
  • Walter Villadei, Italy
  • Alper Gezeravci, Turkey
  • Marcus Wandt, Sweeden