New Delhi: NASA and Axiom Space were yet to announce a new date for the launch of the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS), involving India’s astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three others, after the lift-off was delayed due to a leak detected in SpaceX’s Falcon-9 rocket.
“A new launch date for the fourth private astronaut mission will be provided once available,” a joint statement from Axiom Space and NASA said, announcing the postponement of the launch of the Axiom-4 mission.
The statement said as part of an ongoing investigation, NASA was also working with Roscosmos to understand a new pressure signature, after the recent post-repair effort in the aftmost segment of the International Space Station’s Zvezda service module.
“Cosmonauts aboard the space station recently performed inspections of the pressurised module’s interior surfaces, sealed some additional areas of interest, and measured the current leak rate. Following this effort, the segment is now holding pressure,” the statement said
The postponement of Axiom Mission 4 provides additional time for NASA and Roscosmos to evaluate the situation and determine whether any additional troubleshooting is necessary. NASA defers to Roscosmos to answer specific questions about the Zvezda module, the statement said.
Former NASA astronaut Whitson will command the commercial mission.