The Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station, which includes Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three other crew members, has been postponed as engineers need extra time to address a leak in SpaceX’s Falcon-9 rocket. SpaceX announced that it would be "standing down" from the Falcon-9 launch of the Axiom-4 mission to allow teams to fix the liquid oxygen leak discovered during the post-static booster inspections. SpaceX announced on X that they would be standing down from the Falcon 9 launch of Axiom- 4 to the Space Station scheduled for 5.52 PM today. They stated that this decision was made to give their teams additional time to repair the liquid oxygen leak that was identified during the post-static fire booster inspections. They mentioned that once the repairs were completed and pending range availability, a new launch date would be shared.
"Standing down from tomorrow’s Falcon 9 launch of Ax-4 to the Space Station to allow additional time for SpaceX teams to repair the LOx leak identified during post static fire booster inspections. Once complete – and pending Range availability – we will share a new launch date," SpaceX mentioned in a post on X.
Dr. V. Narayanan, the chairman of ISRO, informed that as part of the launch vehicle preparation to validate the performance of the booster stage of the Falcon 9 launch vehicle, a hot test lasting seven seconds was conducted on the launch pad. He noted that a leakage of liquid oxygen (LOX) was detected in the propulsion bay during the test. Following discussions between the ISRO team and experts from Axiom and SpaceX, it was decided that the leak would be fixed and necessary validation tests would be conducted before proceeding with the launch. As a result, the launch of Axiom 04, originally scheduled for June 11, 2025, to send the first Indian Gaganyatri to the ISS, has been postponed.
The launch has experienced delays for the second time now. Initially set for June 10, the launch was postponed due to unfavorable weather conditions at the site. As of now, the private space agency has yet to announce a new launch date.
Shukla's upcoming journey into space signifies India's return to human spaceflight, 41 years after Rakesh Sharma made history in 1984 by traveling aboard the Soviet Union's Soyuz spacecraft.
Born in Lucknow, Shukla, known by his call sign ‘Shuks,’ is participating in a commercial spaceflight backed by ISRO and NASA, which includes representatives from various national governments as customers.
The Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission features Commander Peggy Whitson, pilot Shukla, and specialists Tigor Kapu from Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland. This 14-day mission aims to realize the long-awaited return to human spaceflight for India, Poland, and Hungary.
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