Overview
- NASA signed the Ax‑5 mission order with Axiom Space for a roughly two‑week visit to the ISS launching no earlier than January 2027 from Kennedy Space Center.
- Axiom will propose four crew members for review by NASA and international partners, and the mission must be commanded by a former astronaut with ISS experience.
- Under the agreement Axiom purchases station services such as consumables and cargo support, while NASA buys Axiom’s capability to return cold scientific samples to Earth.
- Voyager Technologies will participate in Ax‑5 payload integration, adding a new partner to the mission’s commercial lineup.
- NASA says it is finalizing the order for a sixth private astronaut mission as these flights build experience for future commercial stations.