ISRO working with NASA, Axiom, SpaceX to address AX-4 mission to ISS piloted by Indian astronaut
Chennai, June 13 (UNI) The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Friday said it was working with Axiom Space, NASA and SpaceX to address the technical glitch--leakage of LOX
fuel--that led to the deferment of Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) piloted
by decorated Indian astronaut Subhanshu Shukla, carrying the hopes and dreams of billions and conducted seven key microgravity experiments
ISRO said Safety and mission integrity remain its top priorities.
In a post on X, ISRO Chairman V Narayanan said "ISRO is working closely with Axiom Space, NASA, SpaceX as they responsibly address the ISS Zvezda module observation causing the Ax-4 delay. Safety and mission integrity remain our top priorities."
The launch was scheduled to take off to ISS on a 14-day docking at ISS involving four crew members from India, US, Hungary and Poland, but was deferred after the LOX leak was detected during post static fibre booster inspections.
After addressing the glitch, the fresh launch dates would be announced SpaceX and Axiom said and that the launch window availability was still available till June end and July.
This is ISRO first mission in over 40 years and Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will be India's second national astronaut to go to space since 1984 after Rakesh Sharma in 1984.
Meanwhile, in another update, chronicling the mission's key developments, ISRO said "The launch
of Axiom Mission-04 (Ax-04), which includes the launch of India's first astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to the International Space Station, has been postponed.
The launch originally targeted on May 29, 2025 was deferred due to observation in electrical harness in Crew Dragon Module, to June 8, 2025
The launch was postponed by one day to June 09, 2025 due to delay in preparedness of the
Falcon 9 vehicle for the launch from Florida.
The launch date was further postpone to June 10, 2025, due to unfavourable weather in the ascent corridor.
Additional observation of oxygen leakage in the engine bay was observed during the preparation
for hot fire test conducted on June 08, 2025. Moreover, there was an observation of an anomaly
in one of the engine actuator which was replaced along with the controller.
Anticipating the quick resolution of LOX leak issue, the launch was rescheduled to June 11, 2025.
During the appraisal of technical issues by Axiom & SpaceX to ISRO delegation on June 10, 2025, ISRO recommended to carry out in-situ repairs or replacement and conduct a low-temperature leak test to validate system performance and integrity, before proceeding with launch clearance.
On June 11, 2025, NASA informed that they are working with Roscosmos to evaluate a new pressure signature indicating a leak in the aft most segment of the ISS Zvezda Russian service module, after the recent repair attempt. In order to assess the situation and determine the need for further troubleshooting, the launch of Axiom-4 mission is being postponed.
The revised launch schedule will be announced by NASA and Axiom after the activities and technical reviews are satisfactorily completed.
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