Axiom Mission 2

Axiom Mission 2
A Falcon 9 launches Crew Dragon Freedom and the Ax-2 crew to the International Space Station
NamesAx-2
Mission typePrivate spaceflight to the ISS
Operator
COSPAR ID2023-070A
SATCAT no.56739
Websiteaxiomspace.com/ax2
Mission duration9 days, 5 hours, 26 minutes
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftCrew Dragon Freedom
Spacecraft typeCrew Dragon
ManufacturerSpaceX
Crew
Crew size4
Members
Start of mission
Launch dateMay 21, 2023, 21:37:09 (2023-05-21UTC21:37:09Z) UTC (5:37:09 pm EDT)
RocketFalcon 9 Block 5 B1080-1
Launch siteKennedy, LC‑39A
ContractorSpaceX
End of mission
Recovered byMV Megan
Landing dateMay 31, 2023, 03:04 (2023-05-31UTC03:05Z) UTC
Landing siteGulf of Mexico
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Inclination51.66°
Docking with ISS
Docking portHarmony zenith
Docking dateMay 22, 2023, 13:12 UTC
Undocking dateMay 30, 2023, 15:05 UTC
Time docked8 days, 1 hour, 53 minutes

Axiom Mission 2 patch

From left: Whitson, Shoffner, AlQarni and Barnawi

Axiom Mission 2 (or Ax-2) was a private crewed spaceflight operated by Axiom Space. Ax-2 was launched on May 21, 2023, on a SpaceX Falcon 9, successfully docking with the International Space Station (ISS) on May 22. After eight days docked to the ISS, the Dragon crew capsule Freedom undocked and returned to Earth twelve hours later.

Ax-2 was the second Axiom mission after Axiom Mission 1 in April 2022 and the third private crewed SpaceX Dragon mission.