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ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey’s first astronaut returned home to a hero’s welcome Monday, portrayed as a symbol of the country’s advances in technology and aerospace. Alper Gezeravci was greeted by bouquet-laden children at Ankara’s Esenboga Airport as he returned from a private three-week mission to the International Space Station. His space flight, for which Turkey paid roughly $55 million, was the third such journey organized by Houston-based Axiom Space with NASA and SpaceX. A new page has been opened in space science and technologies for Turkey.”Turkey established its own space agency in 2018, and said it will land on the moon by 2026. They enjoyed a few extra days at the space station, waiting for the weather to improve in the splashdown zone.

Persons: — Turkey’s, Gezeravci, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, “, Mehmet Fatih Kacir, Walter Villadei, Sweden’s Marcus Wandt, Michael Lopez, Alegria Organizations: Ankara’s, International Space, Turkey, NASA, SpaceX, ” Industry, Technology Locations: ISTANBUL, Turkish, Turkey, ”, Florida, Houston, ” Turkey

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronauts from Turkey, Italy and Sweden returned to Earth on Friday, ending a private three-week mission to the International Space Station. A former fighter pilot and captain for Turkish Airlines, he became the first person from his country to fly in space. It was Axiom’s third private mission to the space station; the fourth is planned later this year. Photos You Should See View All 21 ImagesBefore leaving the space station, Gezeravci thanked his country for its “bold and determined decision” to send a citizen into space as part of its 100th anniversary as a republic. They enjoyed a few extra days at the space station, waiting for the weather to improve in the splashdown zone.

Persons: Alper, Gezeravci, Walter Villadei, Sweden’s Marcus Wandt, Michael Lopez, Alegria Organizations: International Space, NASA, Houston, SpaceX, Cape Canaveral, Turkish Airlines, Italian Air Force, European Space Agency, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla, Turkey, Italy, Sweden, Florida, Cape

☆ Four Astronauts, Including Turkey's First, Arrive at Space Station
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-20 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Steve Gorman(Reuters) - A four-man crew including Turkey's first astronaut arrived at the International Space Station (ISS) early on Saturday for a two-week stay in the latest such mission arranged entirely at commercial expense by Texas-based startup company Axiom Space. The rendezvous came about 37 hours after the Axiom quartet's Thursday evening liftoff in a rocketship from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Once the astronauts reach the space station, they fall under the responsibility of NASA's mission control operation in Houston. The multinational team was led by Michael López-Alegría, 65, a Spanish-born retired NASA astronaut and Axiom executive making his sixth flight to the space station. Axiom also is one of a handful of companies building a commercial space station of its own intended to eventually replace the ISS, which NASA expects to retire around 2030.

Persons: Steve Gorman, Turkey's, NASA's, Michael López, Axiom's, Walter Villadei, Marcus Wandt, Alper Gezeravcı, David Evans Organizations: Reuters, Space, NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Elon, SpaceX, NASA, Italian Air Force, European Space Agency, Turkish Air Force, ISS Locations: Texas, Cape Canaveral , Florida, Houston, Spanish, Japan, Denmark, U.S, Canada, Los Angeles

☆ SpaceX launches first Turkish astronaut aboard private European space mission
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-18 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —A SpaceX rocket took off for the International Space Station on another trailblazing mission operated entirely by the private sector. On board is a group of European astronauts, including the first person from Turkey to visit outer space. Thursday’s flight is the first Axiom mission in which a government or space agency has purchased all the seats. Courtesy of Axiom SpaceThe European Space Agency and the Swedish National Space Agency arranged Wandt’s ticket. Axiom is one of several companies that has plans eventually to build its own private space station.

Persons: NASA —, Benji Reed, NASA’s, Walter Villadei, Marcus Wandt, Michael López, ”, Alegría, Frank De Winne, —, Michael Suffredini, Matt Ondler Organizations: CNN, SpaceX, International, NASA, United, International Space, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Space Agency’s, Private, European Space Agency, Swedish National Space Agency, Villadei’s, ESA, European Astronaut Centre, ISS, Space, Research Locations: Turkey, United States, Florida, Houston, Cologne, Germany

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Turkey’s first astronaut along with a Swede and Italian launched Thursday to the International Space Station on a chartered SpaceX flight. Their escort on the trip: A retired NASA astronaut who now works for the company that arranged the private flight. Their capsule should reach the space station on Saturday. Russia has been welcoming paid visitors to the space station for more than two decades; NASA didn't until two years ago. With them is Michael Lopez-Alegria, who launched four times as a NASA astronaut before joining Axiom Space and escorting its first chartered flight.

Persons: — Turkey’s, NASA’s, NASA didn't, Alper, ”, Sweden’s Marcus Wandt, Walter Villadei, Michael Lopez, Alegria, “ Organizations: International, SpaceX, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, NASA, Houston, Turkish Airlines, Swedish Aeroplane Corp, European Space Agency, Italian Air Force, Virgin Galactic, Space, Control, Associated Press Health, Science Department, Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science, Educational Media Group, AP Locations: CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla, Italian, Russia, Turkey, Sweden, Italy

☆ Space tourists will probably have sex up there, but they shouldn't get pregnant, researchers warn
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

If someone gets pregnant in space, the radiation could harm them or their embryo, scientists say. Space companies could end up with lawsuits and bad press if they don't talk to tourists about this. SpaceXIt may not even be possible to get pregnant in space, but it's probably not worth taking the chance. That's partly because space research has long been dominated by government agencies. Their findings may not be applicable to humans at all, but they offer hints that reproductive functions could be affected by space radiation and microgravity.

Persons: Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, Origin's, Yusaku Maezawa, Dennis Tito, Sharon, Marc Hagle, Kris Lehnhardt, Lehnhardt, it's, hasn't, Sally Ride, Walter Villadei, Elon Musk, Ludovic Marin, We're, David Cullen, Cullen, Gonzalo Fuentes Organizations: Service, Shepard, Virgin, SpaceX, NASA, Engineers, Virgin Galactic, Chateau, Cranfield University, Reuters Locations: Wall, Silicon, Boca Chica , Texas, Versailles, Paris

Virgin Galactic leases part of the facility. The flight marked a long-delayed breakthrough for Virgin Galactic Holding Inc (SPCE.N), finally inaugurating commercial service after nearly 20 years of fraught by development setbacks. Rounding out the crew was their Virgin Galactic trainer, Colin Bennett, the company's lead "astronaut instructor," and Unity's two pilots, Michael Masucci and Nicola Pecile. Virgin Galactic said Unity topped out its flight at an altitude of nearly 52.9 miles (85.1 km). An earlier prototype of the Virgin Galactic rocket plane crashed during a test flight over California's Mojave Desert in 2014, killing one pilot and seriously injuring another.

Persons: Richard Branson, Joe, Branson, Burt Rutan, Jeff Bezos's, Elon Musk's, Walter Villadei, Angelo Landolfi, Pantaleone, Colin Bennett, Michael Masucci, Nicola Pecile, Bezos, Shepard rocketship, Jose Luis Gonzalez, Steve Gorman, Will Dunham, Nick Zieminski Organizations: Virgin, REUTERS, Virgin Galactic, National Research Council, VSS Unity, America, Galactic, Virgin Galactic Holding Inc, . Virgin, Elon Musk's SpaceX, Italian Air Force, International Space, Air Force, Unity, NASA, U.S . Air Force, Thomson Locations: New Mexico, U.S, Italy, Mexico, Italian, Los Angeles

Virgin Galactic leases part of the facility. The flight marked a long-delayed breakthrough for Virgin Galactic Holding Inc (SPCE.N), finally inaugurating commercial service after nearly 20 years fraught by development setbacks. Virgin Galactic said Unity topped out its flight at an altitude of nearly 52.9 miles (85.1 km). A final crewed test flight to space was conducted with little fanfare five weeks ago. An earlier prototype of the Virgin Galactic rocket plane crashed during a test flight over California's Mojave Desert in 2014, killing one pilot and seriously injuring another.

☆ Virgin Galactic launches first paying customers to the edge of space
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Jackie Wattles | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Virgin Galactic, the venture founded by British billionaire Richard Branson, successfully launched its first paying customers to the edge of space — a milestone two decades in the making. (Future Virgin Galactic flights, however, are expected to include a range of high-profile customers.) Bennett’s role was to assess the comfort and function of the flight, using that information to inform future changes Virgin Galactic might make to its rocket-powered space plane, VSS Unity. Organizations such as NASA have routinely flown experiments on suborbital rockets, including Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin missions. In a tragic 2014 accident, Virgin Galactic’s space plane broke apart during flight, killing the mission’s copilot, Michael Alsbury.

Persons: Richard Branson, Virgin Galactic’s, Jeff Bezos’s, Walter Villadei, Angelo Landolfi, Colin Bennett, Pantaleone, Branson, Burt Rutan, Paul Allen, Hamish Harding, Michael Alsbury, — Organizations: CNN, Virgin Galactic, Italian Air Force, Virgin, SpaceX, Italy’s National Research Council, Branson, VSS, VSS Unity, NASA, International, National Research Council, Microsoft, Galactic, OceanGate, Scaled Composites, Origin, Congress, Federal Aviation Administration, FAA Locations: British, New Mexico, United States

The flight marks a decisive moment for Virgin Galactic Holding Inc (SPCE.N), the space tourism venture founded by British billionaire Richard Branson in 2004, as it inaugurates commercial service following several years fraught with development setbacks. Rounding out the crew was their Virgin Galactic trainer, Colin Bennett, the company's lead "astronaut instructor," and Unity's two pilots, Michael Masucci and Nicola Pecile. A final crewed test flight to space was conducted with little fanfare five weeks ago. Virgin Galactic has said it has already booked a backlog of some 800 customers, charging from $250,000 to $450,000 per seat, and envisions eventually building a large enough fleet to accommodate 400 flights annually. An earlier prototype of the Virgin Galactic rocket plane crashed during a test flight over California's Mojave Desert in 2014, killing one pilot and seriously injuring another.

Persons: Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos's, Elon Musk's, Walter Villadei, Angelo Landolfi, Pantaleone, Colin Bennett, Michael Masucci, Nicola Pecile, Branson, Bezos, Shepard rocketship, Jose Luis Gonzalez, Steve Gorman, Will Dunham Organizations: Virgin Galactic, National Research Council, Italy, Virgin Galactic Holding Inc, Virgin, Elon Musk's SpaceX, Italian Air Force, VSS Unity, International Space, Air Force, America, Unity, NASA, U.S . Air Force, Thomson Locations: New Mexico, Italy, British, Italian, Los Angeles

The flight, dubbed Galactic 01, comes two years after Branson himself rode along with five other Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc (SPCE.N) personnel for the company's first fully crewed test spaceflight of its rocket plane, VSS Unity. Back then, Virgin Galactic officials said they expected to begin regular commercial operations in 2022 following additional test flights. Virgin Galactic had projected booking its first 1,000 paying customers, charging about $250,000 per seat, by the time commercial service opened. An earlier prototype of Virgin Galactic's rocket plane crashed during a test flight over California's Mojave Desert in 2014, killing one pilot and seriously injuring another. Billionaire rival Jeff Bezos, whose astro-tourist venture Blue Origin has already flown several commercial passenger flights, has disparaged Virgin Galactic as falling short of a true spaceflight experience.

Persons: Richard Branson, Joe Skipper, Branson, Walter Villadei, Angelo Landolfi, Pantaleone, Colin Bennett, Michael Masucci, Nicola Pecile, Branson's, Jeff Bezos, Virgin, Shepard rocketship, Jose Luis Gonzalez, Steve Gorman, Will Dunham Organizations: Virgin, Unity, REUTERS, Virgin Galactic, National Research Council, Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc, VSS, Galactic, SpaceX, Origin, Italian Air Force, International Space, Air Force, . Air Force, America, Corporate, NASA, U.S . Air Force, Thomson Locations: New Mexico, U.S, Italy, Mexico, Italian, Branson, Bezos, Los Angeles

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