• Education
    • Higher Education
    • Scholarships & Grants
    • Online Learning
    • School Reforms
    • Research & Innovation
  • Lifestyle
    • Travel
    • Food & Drink
    • Fashion & Beauty
    • Home & Living
    • Relationships & Family
  • Technology & Startups
    • Software & Apps
    • Startup Success Stories
    • Startups & Innovations
    • Tech Regulations
    • Venture Capital
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cybersecurity
    • Emerging Technologies
    • Gadgets & Devices
    • Industry Analysis
  • About us
  • Contact
  • Advertise with Us
  • Privacy & Policy
Today Headline
  • Home
  • World News
    • Us & Canada
    • Europe
    • Asia
    • Africa
    • Middle East
  • Politics
    • Elections
    • Political Parties
    • Government Policies
    • International Relations
    • Legislative News
  • Business & Finance
    • Market Trends
    • Stock Market
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Corporate News
    • Economic Policies
  • Science & Environment
    • Space Exploration
    • Climate Change
    • Wildlife & Conservation
    • Environmental Policies
    • Medical Research
  • Health
    • Public Health
    • Mental Health
    • Medical Breakthroughs
    • Fitness & Nutrition
    • Pandemic Updates
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Tennis
    • Olympics
    • Motorsport
  • Entertainment
    • Movies
    • Music
    • TV & Streaming
    • Celebrity News
    • Awards & Festivals
  • Crime & Justice
    • Court Cases
    • Cybercrime
    • Policing
    • Criminal Investigations
    • Legal Reforms
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • World News
    • Us & Canada
    • Europe
    • Asia
    • Africa
    • Middle East
  • Politics
    • Elections
    • Political Parties
    • Government Policies
    • International Relations
    • Legislative News
  • Business & Finance
    • Market Trends
    • Stock Market
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Corporate News
    • Economic Policies
  • Science & Environment
    • Space Exploration
    • Climate Change
    • Wildlife & Conservation
    • Environmental Policies
    • Medical Research
  • Health
    • Public Health
    • Mental Health
    • Medical Breakthroughs
    • Fitness & Nutrition
    • Pandemic Updates
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Basketball
    • Tennis
    • Olympics
    • Motorsport
  • Entertainment
    • Movies
    • Music
    • TV & Streaming
    • Celebrity News
    • Awards & Festivals
  • Crime & Justice
    • Court Cases
    • Cybercrime
    • Policing
    • Criminal Investigations
    • Legal Reforms
No Result
View All Result
Today Headline
No Result
View All Result
Home Science & Environment Space Exploration

Booster leak delays Ax-4 private astronaut mission to ISS

June 11, 2025
in Space Exploration
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
0
2
SHARES
4
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter


WASHINGTON — A propellant leak in a Falcon 9 booster has delayed the launch of a fourth Axiom Space private astronaut mission to the International Space Station.

SpaceX announced late June 10 that it was postponing the scheduled June 11 launch of a Falcon 9 carrying a Crew Dragon spacecraft on the Ax-4 private astronaut mission. The company did not disclose a new launch date.

The company said it needed more time to fix a liquid oxygen leak found in the Falcon 9 booster during inspections following a static-fire test of the booster June 8. “Once complete – and pending Range availability – we will share a new launch date,” the company stated.

Bill Gerstenmaier, vice president of build and flight reliability at SpaceX, mentioned the leak during a pre-launch briefing June 9, but gave no indication then that the leak would delay the launch.

The liquid oxygen leak, he said, was first detected on the booster’s previous flight, a Starlink launch in April. “We discovered we had not fully repaired the booster during refurbishment,” he said. “We didn’t find the leak and didn’t get it corrected.”

He said work was underway to install hardware to mitigate the leak should it continue, which he expected then to be done in time for a June 11 launch. “We’ll be fully ready to go fly.”

Gerstenmaier also said at the briefing that inspections found a problem with the thrust vector control system on one of the engines, requiring technicians to replace components in that system. That work, he said, was not a constraint to launch.

The booster issue is the latest in a series of delays for the Ax-4 mission, once scheduled to launch in the spring. NASA and SpaceX agreed in February to swap the Crew Dragon spacecraft Endurance, originally set to be used on Ax-4, with a new Crew Dragon spacecraft that had been assigned to NASA’s Crew-10 mission because of delays in completing the new Dragon. That allowed Endurance to be used on Crew-10, which launched in March, pushed Ax-4 into late spring.

Final work getting that new, and not yet named, Crew Dragon ready caused the launch to slip from late May to June 8, followed by slips to June 10 and then June 11 because of weather-related issues.

The is no immediate schedule pressure to launch Ax-4. Dana Weigel, NASA ISS program manager, said at the briefing that the station can support launch opportunities through the end of June. After a break to accommodate the departure and arrival of Russian Progress cargo spacecraft as well as lighting conditions, more Ax-4 launch opportunities begin in the second week of July. “There’s plenty of opportunities to fly the vehicle,” she said.

An extended delay, though, would likely impact not just Ax-4 but also Crew-11, the next NASA crew rotation mission scheduled for no earlier than late July. Gerstenmaier noted the same Falcon 9 booster launching Ax-4 will also launch Crew-11.

Ax-4 is Axiom Space’s fourth private astronaut mission, all flown on Crew Dragon spacecraft. Ax-4 is commanded by former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, who will be making her fifth flight to the ISS after three NASA long-duration missions and Axiom’s Ax-2 mission in 2023.

Also on board are Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, who will be the pilot, and mission specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary. All three will be the second representing their respective nations to go to orbit.

Ax-4 is scheduled to spend about two weeks at the ISS, performing about 60 science investigations as well as outreach activities. That includes some joint projects between NASA and the Indian space agency ISRO. The scientific research is the most done to date on an Axiom mission.

NASA is currently competing two more private astronaut mission (PAM) opportunities to the ISS. Weigel said one would fly in mid to late 2026 and the other in 2027. She gave no indication that proposed budget cuts, including considerations of reducing the station’s crew size, would affect those plans.

Axiom Space won all four previous PAM opportunities with effectively no competition, but at least one other commercial space station developer, Vast, has signaled its intent to compete for the future PAMs.

“We are intending to compete for the opportunities for PAMs 5 and 6,” Allen Flynt, chief of mission services at Axiom Space, said at the briefing. “All these PAM missions we see as highly valuable and informative for Axiom and our preparation for flying our space station.”

Related

Tags: Axiom SpaceCrew DragonFalcon-9ISSSpaceX
Previous Post

In an Illinois forest, many buds are forming earlier and leaves are changing color later » Yale Climate Connections

Next Post

Russia sentences Navalny ally in absentia to 18 years in prison todayheadline

Related Posts

White dots against a red background

Missing link star? Why this ‘teenage vampire’ white dwarf has scientists so excited

June 12, 2025
6

NASA’s SLS Rocket: Booster Separation Motors

June 12, 2025
5
Next Post
Russia sentences Navalny ally in absentia to 18 years in prison

Russia sentences Navalny ally in absentia to 18 years in prison todayheadline

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Family calls for change after B.C. nurse dies by suicide after attacks on the job

Family calls for change after B.C. nurse dies by suicide after attacks on the job

April 2, 2025
Pioneering 3D printing project shares successes

Product reduces TPH levels to non-hazardous status

November 27, 2024

Hospital Mergers Fail to Deliver Better Care or Lower Costs, Study Finds todayheadline

December 31, 2024

Police ID man who died after Corso Italia fight

December 23, 2024
Harris tells supporters 'never give up' and urges peaceful transfer of power

Harris tells supporters ‘never give up’ and urges peaceful transfer of power

0
Des Moines Man Accused Of Shooting Ex-Girlfriend's Mother

Des Moines Man Accused Of Shooting Ex-Girlfriend’s Mother

0

Trump ‘looks forward’ to White House meeting with Biden

0
Catholic voters were critical to Donald Trump’s blowout victory: ‘Harris snubbed us’

Catholic voters were critical to Donald Trump’s blowout victory: ‘Harris snubbed us’

0
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles halts transgender care

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles halts transgender care

June 12, 2025
TikTok sister app Douyin to woo merchants with lower deposit fees amid heated competition

TikTok sister app Douyin to woo merchants with lower deposit fees amid heated competition

June 12, 2025

Hillel calls on TMU to discipline interim dean over anti-Israel posts

June 12, 2025

President El-Sisi Speaks with German Chancellor

June 12, 2025

Recent News

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles halts transgender care

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles halts transgender care

June 12, 2025
0
TikTok sister app Douyin to woo merchants with lower deposit fees amid heated competition

TikTok sister app Douyin to woo merchants with lower deposit fees amid heated competition

June 12, 2025
2

Hillel calls on TMU to discipline interim dean over anti-Israel posts

June 12, 2025
6

President El-Sisi Speaks with German Chancellor

June 12, 2025
4

TodayHeadline is a dynamic news website dedicated to delivering up-to-date and comprehensive news coverage from around the globe.

Follow Us

Browse by Category

  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Basketball
  • Business & Finance
  • Climate Change
  • Crime & Justice
  • Cybersecurity
  • Economic Policies
  • Elections
  • Entertainment
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Environmental Policies
  • Europe
  • Football
  • Gadgets & Devices
  • Health
  • Medical Research
  • Mental Health
  • Middle East
  • Motorsport
  • Olympics
  • Politics
  • Public Health
  • Relationships & Family
  • Science & Environment
  • Software & Apps
  • Space Exploration
  • Sports
  • Stock Market
  • Technology & Startups
  • Tennis
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Us & Canada
  • Wildlife & Conservation
  • World News

Recent News

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles halts transgender care

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles halts transgender care

June 12, 2025
TikTok sister app Douyin to woo merchants with lower deposit fees amid heated competition

TikTok sister app Douyin to woo merchants with lower deposit fees amid heated competition

June 12, 2025
  • Education
  • Lifestyle
  • Technology & Startups
  • About us
  • Contact
  • Advertise with Us
  • Privacy & Policy

© 2024 Todayheadline.co

Welcome Back!

OR

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Business & Finance
  • Corporate News
  • Economic Policies
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Market Trends
  • Crime & Justice
  • Court Cases
  • Criminal Investigations
  • Cybercrime
  • Legal Reforms
  • Policing
  • Education
  • Higher Education
  • Online Learning
  • Entertainment
  • Awards & Festivals
  • Celebrity News
  • Movies
  • Music
  • Health
  • Fitness & Nutrition
  • Medical Breakthroughs
  • Mental Health
  • Pandemic Updates
  • Lifestyle
  • Fashion & Beauty
  • Food & Drink
  • Home & Living
  • Politics
  • Elections
  • Government Policies
  • International Relations
  • Legislative News
  • Political Parties
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Middle East
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Cybersecurity
  • Emerging Technologies
  • Gadgets & Devices
  • Industry Analysis
  • Basketball
  • Football
  • Motorsport
  • Olympics
  • Climate Change
  • Environmental Policies
  • Medical Research
  • Science & Environment
  • Space Exploration
  • Wildlife & Conservation
  • Sports
  • Tennis
  • Technology & Startups
  • Software & Apps
  • Startup Success Stories
  • Startups & Innovations
  • Tech Regulations
  • Venture Capital
  • Uncategorized
  • World News
  • Us & Canada
  • Public Health
  • Relationships & Family
  • Travel
  • Research & Innovation
  • Scholarships & Grants
  • School Reforms
  • Stock Market
  • TV & Streaming
  • Advertise with Us
  • Privacy & Policy
  • About us
  • Contact

© 2024 Todayheadline.co