Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), a private spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS), is set to launch from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A. Operated by Axiom Space with SpaceX and NASA, the mission will use a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket and the new Crew Dragon C213 for a 2–3 week stay in low Earth orbit.
The crew includes commander Peggy Whitson (Axiom Space, fifth flight), pilot Shubhanshu Shukla (ISRO, first Indian astronaut on a commercial mission), and mission specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski (ESA/POLSA, Poland) and Tibor Kapu (HSO, Hungary). This marks the first government-sponsored human spaceflight in over 40 years for India, Poland, and Hungary.
Mission Highlights
- India (Gaganyaan): Shukla will conduct ISRO experiments on cognitive effects, microbial adaptation, muscle atrophy, and crop resilience in microgravity.
- Hungary (HUNOR): Kapu, selected from 247 applicants, represents Hungary’s first astronaut since the Soviet era. The mission includes a unique HUNOR patch.
- Poland (Ignis): Uznański-Wiśniewski, the second ESA astronaut on a commercial mission, will perform technology and life sciences experiments.
Livestream
- SpaceX livestream on Twitter
Reuse Records
@ellhulto made an interesting comparison that shows how far SpaceX has already taken the reuse of Falcon 9.
B1067 is surpassing Columbia soon pic.twitter.com/hbtllSu8mv
— Elliot (@Ellhulto) June 7, 2025
Booster 1067 has already put up 28 launches on the scoreboard. It first entered service on the 27th of April 2022. B1063 is not far behind with 26 launches between the 7th of July, 2023 and 4th of June, 2025.
Space Shuttle Columbia saw 28 launches between April 12th, 1981 and January 16, 2003.
Background information about previous SpaceX launches: Wikipedia
Useful links to stay up to date on launches:
Spaceflightnow.com: Launch Schedule
Everyday Astronaut: Prelaunch Previews
Data: flitghtclub.io
Space News:
NASA Spaceflight nasaspacefight.com