Axiom Mission 4 (Ax‑4) was a private crewed spaceflight to the International Space Station (ISS) operated by Axiom Space in partnership with SpaceX and NASA. The mission launched atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, which placed the spacecraft into low Earth orbit. Ax-4 was the first mission to fly aboard the Crew Dragon capsule 'Grace' (C213), which is the fifth and final Dragon capsule manufactured.
The launch was originally scheduled for June 11, 2025 from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, but was scrubbed for a liquid oxygen leak. A separate leak in the ISS's Zvezda module led to an additional two week launch delay. The mission was eventually launched on June 25, 2025 at 06:31:53UTC (2:31:53a.m.EDT) for an 18-day stay at the ISS before undocking and splashing down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on July 15, 2025 at 09:31:41UTC (2:31:41amPDT).
Crew The four-person crew included commander Peggy Whitson, an Axiom Space employee and former NASA astronaut; pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO); and mission specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski, a European Space Agency (ESA) project astronaut from Poland, and Tibor Kapu, representing the Hungarian Space Office.
The mission marked the first government-sponsored human spaceflight in over 40 years, and only the second overall, for India, Hungary, and Poland. Each of these countries previously flew one astronaut as part of the Soviet Union's Interkosmos program. While those earlier missions docked with Salyut 6 or Salyut 7, Ax-4 was the first government-sponsored mission from any of the three nations to reach the ISS. Among the crew, Shubhanshu Shukla was the first member of India's astronaut corps to fly in space.
Gaganyaan Ax‑4 represented a milestone for the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme, integrating with ISRO's Gaganyaan initiative. While Gaganyaan remained India's independent crewed program, Ax‑4 provided the first opportunity for an Indian astronaut—Shubhanshu Shukla—to fly on a commercial mission to the ISS. Shukla conducted experiments developed by ISRO and Indian institutions, including studies of cognitive effects of screen use, microbial adaptation, muscle atrophy, and crop resilience in microgravity.
According to ISRO, the mission provided practical experience in the intricacies of crew-ground coordination, real-time health telemetry, medical and psychological preparation, international crew integration, and experiment execution. For the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme, it will have a direct impact on astronaut preparedness, safety validation, and mission planning.
Experiments The experiments are co-ordinated by ISRO. Space Microalgae (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) & National Institute of Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), India)— Impact of Microgravity and Radiation in ISS on Edible Microalgae. Myogenesis (The Institute for Stem Cell Science and Regenerative Medicine (InStem), India) — Effect of metabolic supplements on muscle regeneration under microgravity. Sprouts (University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad & Indian Institute of Technology, Dharwad) — Sprouting Salad Seeds in Space: Relevance to Crew Nutrition. Voyager Tardigrade (Indian Institute of Science) — Survival, revival, reproduction, and transcriptome of the eutardigrade Paramacrobiotus sp. BLR strain in space. Voyager Displays (Indian Institute of Science) — Analyzing Human Interaction with Electronic Displays in Microgravity. The study will compare performance of on board and ground crews with respect to ISO 9241 pointing task, Spatial 2-back task, Perceived Stress and WHO Mental Well Being tests. Cyanobacteria in Microgravity (International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB)) — Comparative growth and proteomics responses of cyanobacteria on urea and nitrate in microgravity. Food Crop Seeds in Microgravity (Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology & Kerala Agricultural University) — Impact of Microgravity on Growth and Yield Parameters in Food Crop Seeds.
HUNOR Ax‑4 also carried Tibor Kapu, Hungary's second astronaut after Bertalan Farkas. Tibor Kapu was the first astronaut since the fall of the Soviet Union and the first Hungarian astronaut to board the International Space Station. Although Hungary is also part of the ESA, the HUNOR (short for HUNgarian to ORbit) mission was developed by the Hungarian Space Office (HSO) completely independent of ESA. HUNOR was first announced in 2021 and in July 2022 the Hungarian foreign ministry signed a preliminary deal with Axiom for the flight, which was finalized in September 2023. Tibor Kapu was selected from 247 applicants to fly on the mission, supported by backup astronaut Gyula Cserényi. Kapu is a mechanical engineer and recreational skydiver, Cserényi is an electrical engineer and amateur steeplechase racer. Both completed their NASA training in April 2025. The HUNOR mission had its own patch, separate from the Axiom Mission 4 patch, depicting the Csodaszarvas and four stars representing the final astronaut candidates.
Experiments ATMP (Semmelweis University, 27G-Technology Ltd.) — development of heart muscle cells in space environment CINCINNATI (eCon Kft.) — simulation of thermal comfort for astronauts DIROS (Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Science, Institute of Physics and Astronomy, SGF Kft.) — contributes to better understanding of the Saturn's hexagon cloud pattern and flows in gases or liquids DNA-REPAIR (University of Szeged) — reducing damage to DNA-molecules to protect astronauts from cosmic rays using genetically modified fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), that are to be tested and compared with specimens on Earth END-SANS (Spinsplit Kft.) — experiment to treat astronauts' visual impairment that is caused by long periods in space ENPERCHAR (Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Education and Psychology, Institute of People–Environment Transaction) — the research explores the interaction (transaction) between humans and their physical environment on the International Space Station ESEL3D (University of Pécs) — impact of space conditions on 3D printed devices IMU-DRS (HUN-REN Alfréd Rényi Institute of Mathematics) — positioning in space using accelerometers KRIJAP (HUN-REN Research Centre for Natural Sciences) — crystal growth from new organic material in zero gravity, with resulting crystals to be brought to Earth where their atomic structure is to be determined M4D (Aedus Space Kft.) — medicine tester that uses capillary action to make sure ingredients mix precisely at the right time and place MAGOR (University of Szeged) — examining damage to the astronauts' microbiome and negative impact on their health caused by weightlessness, cosmic radiation and special diets MAGYAR (University of Pécs) — testing brain function in weightlessness using VR MICATO (Triage Capital Zrt.) — testing ion engines in microgravity ORBGEO (Space Apps Kft.) — tracking the orbit of spacecraft using photographs POSITIVE (ADMATIS Kutató, Gyártó és Kereskedelmi Kft.) — foaming of building material from lunar regolith RANDAM (27G-Technology Kft.) — usage of a new, tiny, energy-efficient radiation dosimeter that also records scientific data on other environmental factors SAET (University of Szeged) — the impact of space travel on associative learning (Space Acquired Equivalence Test) SINGREAD (Észak-Pesti Centrumkórház–Honvédkórház) — studying the human voice in space SIS (University of Pécs) — 3D footage of the astronaut's daily activities (Step in Space) TESH (Európai Tudásközpont Fejlesztő, Szolgáltató és Kereskedelmi Kft., Semmelweis University, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Canadian Space Agency (CSA)) — health assessment of astronauts UHU (HUN-REN Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science) — photographing upper-atmospheric lightning, namely sprites, blue and gigantic jets from the ISS VISPRO (University of Debrecen) — vascular ultrasound examination in weightlessness VITAPRIC (University of Debrecen, University of Pécs) — examining space conditions on vitamin, mineral and protein content of plant samples
Ignis For Poland, Ax‑4 was the first crewed mission since 1978. The Polish Space Agency (POLSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) have partnered on the Ignis mission for astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski. He was the second ESA astronaut to fly on a commercial human spaceflight mission. His payload suite included experiments in technology and life sciences.
Mission patch The Ignis mission had its own patch, separate from the Axiom Mission 4 patch, depicting an eagle in the Polish colors whose wings trace the contours of the Orla Perć mountain range and a stylized depiction of the Scutum constellation (a tribute to Johannes Hevelius who named the constellation) over the mission's name, Ignis, the Latin word for fire.
Training Before the mission, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski trained at facilities in Europe, Japan, and the United States. At the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, he focused on the experiments he will perform and on ESA's Columbus laboratory module. At JAXA's Tsukuba Space Center in Japan, his training covered the operation of the Japanese Experiment Module Kibō. In the United States, he trained at various NASA facilities, as well as at facilities of SpaceX and Axiom Space. His preparation also included parabolic flights and outdoor survival training.
Experiments AstroMentalHealth (University of Silesia) — impact of isolation, technology, and limited contact with nature on astronauts' mental health AstroPerformance (Mollis Textus) (Smarter Diagnostics) — studying the impact of spaceflight on the soft tissues of the musculoskeletal system EEG Neurofeedback (Academy of Physical Education and Sport in Gdańsk) — electroencephalography for supporting astronauts' mental resilience and focus Human Gut Microbiota (Military University of Technology) — study of changes in the community of microorganisms in the digestive system during spaceflight Immune Multiomics (Military University of Technology) — effects of the space environment on gene expression and DNA methylation in blood mononuclear cells Leopard Data Processing Unit (KP Labs) — demonstrating AI‑based data processing in orbit to reduce ground infrastructure requirements MXene in LEO (AGH University of Krakow) — stability of MXene-type nanomaterials in space conditions and their use in wearable devices PhotonGrav (Cortivision) — testing functional near-infrared spectroscopy-based brain-computer interface RadMon-on-ISS (SigmaLabs) — scalable radiation detectors Space Volcanic Algae (Extremo Technologies) — survival and adaptation of extremophilic volcanic microalgae in space conditions Stability of Drugs (Polish Academy of Sciences) — stability of polymeric drug release systems in space conditions Wireless Acoustics (Svantek) — noise measurements in the ESA Columbus module using an acoustic monitor and a personal dosimeter Yeast TardigradeGene (University of Szczecin, Adam Mickiewicz University, and University of Silesia) — survival and energy state of tardigrade-gene-infused yeast in space conditions Mission
On June 10, 2025, the launch of Ax-4 was postponed after SpaceX detected a liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon 9 rocket during a post-static fire inspection. The mission was put on hold to allow time for necessary repairs. SpaceX officially announced it was "standing down" from the launch to ensure the safety and integrity of the mission hardware.