Axiom-3 space mission's return postponed

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) — The return of the Axiom-3 Mission crew from the International Space Station (ISS) was postponed until at least Monday due to "unfavorable recovery conditions," SpaceX announced early Saturday.

"We are now targeting no earlier than Monday, February 5 for Dragon and the Ax-3 crew to undock," the private space company said in an announcement on X about the return of the crew, including Türkiye's first space traveler Alper Gezeravci, on its Dragon capsule.

"Teams will continue to monitor weather ahead of the next undocking opportunity," it added.

The Dragon capsule, which will carry Axiom-3 mission to the Earth, was expected to undock from the ISS at 6 a.m. Eastern Time (1100GMT).

The four-person mission was launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida on Jan. 19 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

The Ax-3 space mission crew docked at the ISS on Jan. 20.

Gezeravci and his three crewmates from Spain, Italy, and Sweden was responsible for carrying out over 30 scientific experiments.