As part of NASA’s efforts to create commercial opportunities in space, the third private astronaut mission to the International Space Station has successfully completed its journey. Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3) and its four crew members returned safely to Earth on Friday, landing off the coast of Daytona, Florida.

Axiom Space astronauts Michael Lopez-Alegría, Walter Villaday, Markus Wandt and Alper Gezeravi returned to Earth at 8:30 a.m. aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, completing their approximately 22-day mission, which included 18 days on the space station. The crew on the SpaceX evacuation vehicle rescued the spacecraft and astronauts.

“Low Earth orbit is now within humanity’s economic sphere of influence. This provides the best opportunity for the U.S. commercial space sector to capture new global and domestic markets and provide critical capabilities to advance the nation’s space goals,” he said at NASA’s Commercial Space Center at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “This groundbreaking Ax-3 mission is part of NASA’s larger effort to open up space for more people, more exploration and more opportunities as it prepares to transition to future private space stations later this year,” said Phil McAllister, director of the Department. ten years”.

The Ax-3 mission was launched on January 18 at 16:49 on a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Approximately 37 hours later, Dragon docked at the forward port of the Harmony module. The astronauts left the same port at 9:20 a.m. on Wednesday to begin their journey home.

The crew spent more than two weeks conducting microgravity research, training studies and commercial activities. The spacecraft is returning to Florida for inspection and processing at SpaceX’s maintenance facility at the Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral; Here, teams will examine the spacecraft’s data and performance throughout the flight. During their missions, astronauts conducted more than 30 scientific experiments and brought science back to Earth, including NASA cargo.

Supporting private astronaut missions is part of NASA’s strategy to create a vibrant commercial economy in orbit, and the agency will be just one of many customers.

The Ax-3 mission is the result of NASA’s efforts to develop the commercial market for low Earth orbit and usher in a new era of space exploration that will allow more people and organizations to fly multiple mission targets. This partnership expands the history of human spaceflight and provides access to low Earth orbit and the International Space Station for more human, scientific and commercial opportunities.