(Finance) – The launch of the Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3), Axiom Space’s private mission, is postponed to January 18th. After a day of waiting in view of the launch, initially scheduled for this evening (at 11.11 pm Italian time), the company made the announcement of the postponement SpaceX in a post on platform The launch is now scheduled for 11.49pm on Thursday 18 January. The Falcon 9 launcher, with the Crew Dragon shuttle they therefore remain waiting on platform 39 of the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The Italian is part of the crew of the Ax-3 mission which will remain on the ISS for 14 days Walter Villadei, colonel of the Italian Air Force, who has the role of pilot on board. Fly with the Swede Marcus Wandt, of the new class of astronauts of the European Space Agency and with the first Turkish astronaut, Alper Gezeravci. The veteran is in command Michael Lopez-Alegria, who after a long career in NASA now works for Axiom Space.
On board, in addition to the four crew members, there will also be Italian excellence. In fact, the 14 days spent on the International Space Station will see Villadei involved in various tasks innovative experiments by Italian companies, ranging from telemedicine to aerospace apparel. They range from real-time measurement of the flow of cosmic particles and the protection capacity offered to astronauts by special materials developed by the Parma car manufacturing company Dallara, to the use of a new protocol developed by Mental Economy, a company from Lucca, with the support of Pwc Italy, to improve the neuronal efficiency of those carrying out stressful activities. To these are added the GVM Assistance project, company from Ravenna engaged in digital healthcare, which involves real-time monitoring of Villadei’s vital parameters with video consultations, to refine telemedicine techniques, and that of the Marche startup Spacewear which works in the aerospace clothing sector: the colonel, in fact, he will wear a special suit designed for him, made of a hi-tech fireproof and super-light fabric, capable of maintaining body temperature both at rest and under stress and equipped with sensors for monitoring the state of health.
As highlighted by Villadei the mission will be a test for Italy. “Our country, in the past, had a fundamental role in the construction of the ISS, but today we are at a turning point: private individuals are starting to enter as protagonists, just look at Space – he said Villadei –. In this panorama, Italy can and must maintain a strong presence and cannot do so without industry. From this point of view, the mission is a bit of a test bed: its main purpose, in addition to the scientific one, will be to demonstrate that Italy has had the right intuition and can play a leading role. The last 10 months – explained the colonel – have been characterized by very intense training and for a few months even more intense, in order to be ready not only from a physical point of view but also in relation to the procedures, maneuvers and experiments which we will have to carry out once we reach the ISS. We will already be on board the shuttle more than two hours before the launch, to check that everything is working correctly. The initial part of the flight, which lasts a total of 36 hours, is managed more automatically, when the capsule enters orbit it will come to life and therefore the pilot and commander have a more active role as they get closer to the Space Station”.