Astronauts from India, Poland, and Hungary blast off on a privately funded trip to the space station
Besides Whitson, the crew includes India's Shubhanshu Shukla, a pilot in the Indian Air Force; Hungary's Tibor Kapu, a mechanical engineer; and Poland's Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a radiation expert and one of the European Space Agency's project astronauts sometimes pressed into temporary duty.
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The astronauts are due to arrive at the orbiting lab the next morning.
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In addition to dozens of experiments, the astronauts are flying food that celebrates their heritage: Indian curry and rice with mango nectar; spicy Hungarian paprika paste; and freeze-fried Polish pierogies.
Hungary's first astronaut, Bertalan Farkas, traveled to the launch site to cheer on Kapu.
Farkas launched with the Soviets in 1980, taking along a teddy bear in a cosmonaut suit that went back up with Kapu. India and Poland's original astronauts also launched with the Soviets in the late 1970s and 1980s.
Uznanski-Wisniewski carried up the Polish flag worn on his predecessor's spacesuit, noting that Miroslaw Hermaszewski was his biggest supporter until his death in 2022. India's first astronaut, Rakesh Sharma, couldn't make it to Florida for the launch; Shukla said he's been a mentor 'at every step of this journey' and is flying a surprise gift for him.
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While others born in India and Hungary have flown in space before — including NASA astronaut Kalpana Chawla, who died aboard the shuttle Columbia in 2003, and two-time space tourist Charles Simonyi, of Microsoft fame — they were U.S. citizens at the time of launch.
Shukla said before the flight that he hopes 'to ignite the curiosity of an entire generation in my country' and drive innovation. Like his crewmates, he plans several outreach events with those back home.
'I truly believe that even though I, as an individual, am traveling to space, this is the journey of 1.4 billion people,' he said.
It was Axiom's fourth chartered flight to the space station since 2022 and Whitson's second time flying as an Axiom crew commander and chaperone. The trip caused her to miss her induction into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame late last month, since she was in quarantine before the flight. Whitson joined Axiom after retiring from NASA nearly a decade ago and has logged almost two years in orbit over her career.
Once opposed to nontraditional station guests, NASA now throws out the welcome mat, charging for their food and upkeep while insisting that an experienced astronaut accompany them.
It's all part of NASA's push to open space — moon included — to private businesses. Axiom is among several U.S. companies planning to launch their own space stations in the next few years. The goal is for them to be up and running before the international station comes down in 2031 after more than three decades of operation.
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Access to space 'is not only for the biggest agencies anymore — space is for everyone,' Poland's Uznanski-Wisniewski said ahead of liftoff.
Hungarians want to 'sit at the same table with the giants,' said Kapu. Through this mission, 'Hungary gets one step closer to the stars.'
They should have flown earlier this year, but their mission was delayed following a switch in SpaceX capsules. The change enabled NASA's two stuck astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to return to Earth in March sooner than planned.
The Axiom astronauts faced more launch delays once arriving in Florida. SpaceX had to fix an oxygen leak in its rocket, then NASA put the crew's visit on indefinite hold while monitoring repairs to longtime air leaks on the Russian side of the space station.
SpaceX CEO and founder Elon Musk's Falcon rockets launching from Florida and California are considerably smaller than the Starships making test flights out of Texas and, this year, exploding one after the other. Reliable frequent flyers, Falcons have been carrying crews to orbit since 2020.
NASA needs Starship for the moon, while Musk envisions it for Mars travel.
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Former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space Peggy Whitson is the commander; Indian Space Research Organisation astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is the pilot; and European Space Agency project astronauts Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are the mission specialists. This is the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel) Launch of the Axiom Ax-4 mission from Launch Complex 39-A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space Peggy Whitson is the commander; Indian Space Research Organisation astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is the pilot; and European Space Agency project astronauts Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are the mission specialists. This is the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel) The Falcon 9 rocket venting before the launch of the Axiom Ax-4 mission from Launch Complex 39-A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space Peggy Whitson is the commander; Indian Space Research Organisation astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is the pilot; and European Space Agency project astronauts Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are the mission specialists. This is the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel) The Falcon 9 rocket venting before the launch of the Axiom Ax-4 mission from Launch Complex 39-A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space Peggy Whitson is the commander; Indian Space Research Organisation astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is the pilot; and European Space Agency project astronauts Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are the mission specialists. This is the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel) Show Caption1 of 10Launch of the Axiom Ax-4 mission from Launch Complex 39-A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. Former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space Peggy Whitson is the commander; Indian Space Research Organisation astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is the pilot; and European Space Agency project astronauts Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are the mission specialists. This is the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)Expand A Falcon 9 rocket topped with the capsule carrying the four-person crew of the Ax-4 mission lifted off from KSC's Launch Pad 39-A at 2:31 a.m. headed to the International Space Station. It lit up the clear night sky with the rocket's bright burn streaking across the pinholes of constellations like Andromeda, Cepheus and Cygnus the swan. As it climbed higher, the rocket plume created what's been called a jellyfish effect of quavering blue and orange waves of light. The first-stage booster made its second flight with a recovery landing at nearby Cape Canaveral Space Force Station's Landing Zone 1, bringing a sonic boom that was heard across parts of Central Florida in the wee hours of the morning. Former NASA astronaut and now Axiom Space employee Commander Peggy Whitson, who is making her fifth spaceflight, revealed the spacecraft's new name shortly after reaching orbit. 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She was leading a crew of three customers from three countries that had not sent anyone to space in more than four decades. Taking the role of pilot was India's Shubhanshu Shukla while Sławosz Uznański of Poland, a European Space Agency project astronaut, and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are mission specialists. Each man is now the second to fly for their country, and the first as astronauts. Their predecessors flew as cosmonauts under a program with the Soviet Union in the 1970s and early 1980s. The mission had a tortuous path to launch. Attempts in just the last two weeks had been called off because of weather, a leak on the rocket and a leak on the space station. There was even a scare with less than an hour before liftoff when SpaceX had to troubleshoot getting data loaded into the new Crew Dragon needed in case of an emergency abort after launch. With one minute to go before SpaceX would have had to call off the launch, though, mission control let the crew know they were good to proceed. The mission was originally targeting a 2024 launch but kept getting pushed for sundry reasons including losing their original ride to space, the flight-proven Crew Dragon Endurance, which ended up serving the needs of the Crew-10 mission that flew up to the space station in March. That change was due to SpaceX's delays in getting the new Crew Dragon ready, but it ultimately became the Ax-4 ride, meaning its crew was given the honor of naming it. 'Good things come to those who wait,' said mission control after the name reveal. 'Godspeed to the maiden crew of Grace.' Since its first human spaceflight in 2020, SpaceX has now flown its fleet of Crew Dragon spacecraft 18 times carrying 68 humans to space. Whitson flew three times for NASA in her career, but is now leading an Axiom mission for the second time. With675 days on orbit in the books, she holds the record for any woman and any American for time in space. She'll now add onto that as Crew Dragon is now targeting arrival to the space station about 7 a.m. Thursday. The Axiom Ax-4 crew stop to talk with family in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 before driving in some SpaceX Teslas out to Launch Pad 39-A for a launch attempt early Wednesday. From left to right are Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Tibor Kapu of Hungary, commander and Axiom Space employee Peggy Whitson, and Sławosz Uznański of Poland.(Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel) The Axiom Ax-4 crew stop to talk with family in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 before driving in some SpaceX Teslas out to Launch Pad 39-A for a launch attempt early Wednesday. From left to right are Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Tibor Kapu of Hungary, commander and Axiom Space employee Peggy Whitson, and Sławosz Uznański of Poland.(Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel) The Axiom Ax-4 crew stop to talk with family in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 before driving in some SpaceX Teslas out to Launch Pad 39-A for a launch attempt early Wednesday. From left to right are Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Tibor Kapu of Hungary, commander and Axiom Space employee Peggy Whitson, and Sławosz Uznański of Poland.(Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel) The Axiom Ax-4 crew stop to talk with family in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 before driving in some SpaceX Teslas out to Launch Pad 39-A for a launch attempt early Wednesday. From left to right are Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Tibor Kapu of Hungary, commander and Axiom Space employee Peggy Whitson, and Sławosz Uznański of Poland.(Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel) Show Caption1 of 5The Axiom Ax-4 crew stop to talk with family in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday, June 24, 2025 before driving in some SpaceX Teslas out to Launch Pad 39-A for a launch attempt early Wednesday. From left to right are Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Tibor Kapu of Hungary, commander and Axiom Space employee Peggy Whitson, and Sławosz Uznański of Poland.(Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel)Expand The quartet made a stop to see families after 10 p.m. Tuesday with the massive Vehicle Assembly Building looming in the background before hopping in a pair of black Teslas and driving off to the launch pad. Shukla's family including his young son Sid held an Indian flag. 'I'm ready for him to launch,' Sid said as his father drove away. Whitson paid homage to their families and others minutes before liftoff. 'To every person behind the scenes, engineers, trainers, families and friends, you are the quiet force behind this mission,' she said. 'We carry the hopes of many with us as we realize this return, we will bring those hopes home to you.' The quartet plan to spend about two weeks on board the space station performing more than 60 experiments, including some partnered with NASA. 'From all of us that are staying here on the ground, we look forward to your mission,' came the prelaunch call from mission control. 'All the hard work from our teams culminates here. So good luck. Enjoy the ride and science the heck out of all your experiments.'
