Axiom-3 space mission's return postponed Turkish astronaut to stay in space

The return of the Axiom-3 Mission crew from the International Space Station (ISS) was postponed due to "unfavourable recovery conditions," SpaceX has announced.

"Due to ongoing unfavourable weather off the coast of Florida, Dragon is standing down from Tuesday's undocking from the Space Station. The spacecraft and Ax-3 crew remain healthy, and teams will continue to monitor weather conditions for the next available undocking opportunity," the private space company said on February 5 on X about the return of the crew, including Türkiye's first space traveller Alper Gezeravci, on its Dragon capsule, Anadolu reports.

"The spacecraft and Ax-3 crew remain healthy, and teams will continue to monitor weather conditions for the next available undocking opportunity," it added.

The four-person mission was launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida on Jan. 19 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

The Ax-3 space mission crew docked at the ISS on Jan. 20.

Gezeravci and his three crewmates from Spain, Italy, and Sweden were responsible for carrying out over 30 scientific experiments.