Liftoff of Axiom Mission 3 with Marcus Wandt

The launch of ESA project astronaut Marcus Wandt to the International Space Station on Axiom Mission 3 (Ax-3). Marcus’s mission is called Muninn.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will lift off from launch pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, on 18 January 2024. Marcus will fly as a mission specialist on the Dragon spacecraft. The other Axiom 3 crew members are Walter Villadei from Italy and Alper Gezeravcı from Türkiye. They will fly under the command of Michael López-Alegría, representing both USA and Spain as a dual-citizen.

Marcus is the first of a new generation of European astronauts to fly on a commercial human spaceflight opportunity with Axiom Space. His mission is supported by ESA and the Swedish National Space Agency (SNSA).

During his two-week mission, Marcus will devote much of his time to scientific activities and technology demonstrations that could shape the way we live and work on Earth. In total, he will run around 20 experiments.

Marcus Wandt was selected in November 2022 as a member of the ESA astronaut reserve after a year-long selection process. The 2022 ESA recruitment campaign received over 22 5000 applications from across its Member States.