UK plans space mission after striking deal with US firm

The UK House Company and a US spaceflight companies firm have signed an preliminary settlement as they bid to ship British astronauts into orbit for 2 weeks, the company mentioned Wednesday.

The memorandum of understanding with Houston-based Axiom House units out plans for a flight that might see British astronauts conduct a two-week mission in space.

“On this future flight, the UK astronauts would launch to space, spending as much as two weeks on orbit to hold out scientific research, display new applied sciences, and take part in schooling and outreach actions,” the company mentioned.

Axiom was based by its chief govt Michael Suffredini, who served as NASA’s Worldwide House Station (ISS) program supervisor from 2005 to 2015.

It has despatched two crewed missions into orbit with SpaceX rockets in April 2022 and in Could this 12 months.

The first mission carried an astronaut and three “buyers” with the crew spending 17 days in orbit.

The second mission carried a crew of 4 and lasted 10 days.

Axiom says it’s engaged on what is going to turn out to be the first-ever industrial space station.

The mission with the UK could be commercially sponsored and supported by the European House Company.

It will construct on the UK authorities’s space technique which identifies 5 applied sciences as important: artificial intelligence, engineering biology, telecommunications, semiconductors and quantum applied sciences.

“With this settlement because the preliminary basis, we are going to construct a complete mission plan in help of the UK’s nationwide and company aims to advance its capabilities in space exploration and discovery,” Suffredini mentioned.

Helen Sharman from Sheffield grew to become the primary Briton in space in 1991 when she went into orbit aboard a Soviet Soyuz TM-12 space capsule.

© 2023 AFP