The four-person crew is due to dock with the ISS at a time around 1 p.m. Polish time, depending on the progress off the mission. The journey is a major milestone for Poland’s involvement in international space research.

UznaÅ„ski-WiÅ›niewski will participate in biotechnology-related research, which potentially could help develop food-growing methods on Mars. His mission extends a tradition that began in 1978 when MirosÅ‚aw Hermaszewski went into orbit aboard the Soviet mission Soyuz 30 and became the first Polish person in space.

A Worldwide Group on a Science-Driven Journey
The Axiom-4 mission is the fourth mission planned by U.S. private company Axiom Space in collaboration with NASA and SpaceX. The Dragon spacecraft’s lead vehicle operator is Peggy Whitson, a veteran NASA astronaut who currently serves as the director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space.

The pilot of the mission is Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, and scientific research will be conducted under the supervision of UznaÅ„ski-WiÅ›niewski, and Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu. The two specialists are scheduled to perform as many as 60 experiments during the two-week mission.

This spaceflight highlights the important public-private partnerships that are key to success in this new era of space exploration. science beyond Earth.