For 1st Axiom launch with SpaceX, civilian science plays into new space station goals

Axiom Space is gearing up for its first launch in just over three months, in which it has partnered with SpaceX using Crew Dragon from Kennedy Space Center to send civilians to the International Space Station. The paying customers won’t be just enjoying the view. They have a big list of jobs to do, too.

Each of the three civilians — Larry Connor, Mark Pathy and Eytan Stibbe — paid Axiom $55 million each for the trip. They have arranged experiments and other activities that range from testing human cells that have stopped dividing for the Mayo Clinic to mapping the Great Lakes region for The Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

Officials with Houston-based Axiom Space say the approach falls in line with their business plan to eventually build their own commercial space station as a replacement for the ISS.

“What’s great about this, this crew in particular, is they approach this flight not from the interest of just going for a joyride,” said Christian Maender, director of in-space manufacturing & research for Axiom. “They really brought to the table they were interested in flying if they could do a portfolio of work that is meaningful to them.”

Axiom has plans to send up a private module to connect to the International Space Station as early as 2024, and in time to send up several before eventually disconnecting from the ISS and becoming part of its own privately run space station. The goal of that space station is to cater to customers who seek out not just space tourism, but meaningful use of low-Earth orbit opportunities, Maender said.

While Axiom’s space station plans have been in the works for some time, recent announcements have two other major groups looking to build out their own commercial space stations. Nanoracks, which already works with companies to send payloads to the ISS, is partnering with Lockheed Martin and Voyager Space, which is the majority stakeholder in Nanoracks, to build a space station called Starlab. Blue Origin is partnering with Sierra Space, Boeing and others for a space station called Orbital Reef.

Maender sees the competition as proof of concept for Axiom Space, and notes they have a multi-year head start, with a lot of ISS collaboration already in place that could make Axiom’s station become more affordable at the offset.

“Ultimately, what would be great, and what we see from a strategic vision perspective is we’d love to see enough use cases in space that it supports multiple space stations in orbit,” he said.

For at least the first four launches, Axiom is sticking with SpaceX to bring passengers to the ISS. Their arrival will mark the first time civilians have made it to the station on a spacecraft other than Russia’s Soyuz rockets.

“This is why they built these crew vehicles,” Maender said. “They certainly wanted to satisfy NASA’s demand for getting crew to ISS, but there was always a vision for going straight into commercial and flying people to commercial space stations. And so I think this is just the first demonstration of that capability. So I hope we continue to work together for a long time.”

For now, Ax-1 looks to lift off from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39-A as early as Feb. 21. Axiom’s second mission is looking at November 2022.

Ax-1 will bring its three civilians up with Axiom employee and commander Michael López-Alegría, a veteran of three space shuttle flights as well as having flown on a Soyuz to and from the ISS as part of a 215-day mission.

López-Alegría will ensure the three paying customers get their projects done, and in some cases be participating as a human subject as part of the planned 10-day mission. All four will conclude their mission when the SpaceX Dragon returns to Earth with a splashdown off the Florida coast.

Connor, an Ohio native, is an entrepreneur who once earned a lot of money with his Orlando Computer Corp. venture in the late 1980s. He made a lot more money in real estate with his Connor Group. As an avid aviation enthusiast, Connor will act as the pilot for the mission. His altruistic interests have led to partnerships with the Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic, which are a major part of his science plans for the Ax-1 mission.

“That’s what I’m excited about,” he said. “It’s not about being the pilot. It’s about doing things that can only be done in space – experiments in microgravity. It’s a unique way to help humankind.”

The main experiment is on senescent cells, which are cells that have stopped dividing and are linked to many age-related diseases. He’s also performing an experiment on heart health. Before and after launch, Connor will also submit to MRIs so researchers can see the effect of spaceflight on spinal and brain tissue.

Taking the role of mission specialist is Pathy, who founded an investment company based in Canada, will be performing experiments for Canadian-based hospitals, universities and The Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

He has 12 projects lined up on board while also working with two tech startups to demonstrate app-based 3D projections from space to Earth. Among his experiments will be research of chronic pain and sleep disturbances during space travel, and experiments aimed at understanding Spaceflight-Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome, which is an eye-related issue that occurs in people who spend long periods in space.

He also will be making observations for the geographic society honing in on North America to gather data on the impact of climate change and urbanization, especially in the Great Lakes region.

Another mission specialist on board will be Stibbe, a former pilot in the Israeli Air Force who flew under the command at one point of Ilan Ramon. Ramon died aboard Space Shuttle Columbia in 2003 and was the first Israeli in space.

Stibbe would become the first Israeli to venture to the ISS. Working with the Ramon Foundation, Stibbe will conduct educational, artistic and science activities to engage Israel’s younger generation.