--- title: "NASA Officially Approves First SpaceX Tourists to Visit Space Station" description: "NASA is soon to get its first fully-private astronaut mission to the International Space Station. NASA has just approved a crew of four private astronauts to fly up to the International Space Station with Axiom Space, the consumer space travel company, on the first American mission of its kind. Though the rest of the crew […]" date: "2022-02-07" modified: "2022-02-07" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-private-iss-mission" categories: - "NASA" - "Space" - "SpaceX" tags: - "international space station" - "NASA" - "Roscosmos" - "space tourism" - "the digest" --- # NASA Officially Approves First SpaceX Tourists to Visit Space Station ![NASA just approved a SpaceX project to launch its first fully-private astronaut mission to the International Space Station.  ]() *\Image: Axiom Space via NASA\* ## First Class NASA [just approved]() a crew of four private astronauts to fly up to the International Space Station with Axiom Space and SpaceX, on the first American mission of its kind. Though the rest of the crew are apparent novices, Michael López-Alegría, the mission's commander, was previously a NASA astronaut. Along with the Spanish-American López-Alegría, the March 30 launch also includes another American, Larry Connor, who will serve as pilot, as well as Canadian Mark Pathy and Israeli Eytan Stibbe. https://twitter.com/Commercial\_Crew/status/1488935594361339909 ## Old News Though this mission is the first completely-private mission to the ISS that'll be funded by private spaceflight companies, it's far from the first time private astronauts have gone to the ISS, which has been going on nearly as long as the station's been in orbit. The American engineer Dennis Tito takes the distinction as the world's first "space tourist," and he was able to spend eight days on the then-young ISS when he [hitched a ride with Russia's Roscosmos in April 2001](). Much more recently, Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa, along with his assistant Yozo Hirano, became the [latest private astronauts to board the ISS]() in December 2021 — and they, too, were flown up on a Russian Soyuz rocket. NASA has been far more reticent than Roscosmos to allow private astronauts to board the ISS. The US space agency didn't even lay the groundwork for private ISS missions [until 2019](), when it announced a sea change that should allow for more commercial endeavors in orbit. Indeed, in its announcement about the Axiom mission, NASA plugged its desire to stimulate a "commercial economy in low-Earth orbit," which signals that it's joining the consumer space race in earnest. Along with the March mission, NASA has also [approved Axiom for its second ISS private mission]() as well, which should launch either at the end of 2022 or the beginning of 2023. It could be a new dawn in space travel — and NASA's Axiom and SpaceX partnerships seem to be its insurance against getting left behind. **READ MORE:** [NASA, Space Station Partners Approve First Axiom Mission Astronauts]() \[NASA\] **More on space tourism:** [*Check Out How Stoked This Billionaire Is to Leave Our Dying Planet*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()