Axiom Space, the world’s first private space habitat company, is going to embark on an intrepid space research mission next year. The company offers paid space excursions in its commercial space station. For the first time, the company’s four private astronauts are set to travel to the ISS or the International Space Station to conduct research experiments.
The Mission
As a part of the company’s highly anticipated Ax-1 Mission, Axiom is set to send their first crewed flight to the ISS, incoming February 2022. The shuttle carrying the crew inside will be a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule, which is the first of several SpaceX Crew Dragon flights Axiom purchased in March 2020 from SpaceX, to open a smooth two-way manned transportation between the planet and the ISS.
The Goal
One of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rockets will be launched under Ax-1 next February. While reaching the ISS, the rocket will spend two days in orbit. After being docked with the orbiting lab, the Axiom crew will spend 8 days onboard, conducting the research, which should be completed by an estimated 100 hours. The four crew members will have company at the space station. A group of Russian cosmonauts, German astronauts, and NASA astronauts are currently up there, who will join the experimentation.
The Path-breaking Research
Among the 25 research experiments on the mission, the focal research will include experimenting with stem cells to scale how space impacts aging. The crew will also perform a two-day 3D hologram projection demonstration with the help of a Microsoft HoloLens. NASA has already demonstrated a one-way ‘holoportation’ from the ground to the space station, but this time a two-way holoporting dialogue will be conducted by one of the Axiom Space crew members.
The Men on the Mission
The Axiom flight crews onboard Ax-1 will include Michael López-Alegría, the former NASA astronaut and the mission’s commander. The three other members are Larry Connor, an American nonprofit activist investor, Canadian investor Mark Pathy, Israeli investor, and former Israeli fighter pilot Eytan Stibbe. They have all paid $55 million each to ride onboard Ax-1 and helped in deciding the research experiments to be conducted.
Ossia Reveals First Collection of Gadgets With True Over-Air Wireless Charging
The concept of wireless charging doesn’t facilitate much, apart from allowing a device to be charged without a plugged-in cable. But the true over-the-air wireless charging technology has been a far-fetched reality, until the recent announcement of Ossia. In a partnership with Archos, Ossia is about to release a series of first gadgets with over-air wireless charging technology, hitting the market next year.
The Technology
Five years ago at the CES 2016, Ossia first turned the heads of the audiences by demonstrating their revolutionary Cota Real Wireless Power technology, which allows a device to start charging instantly, once it enters in the proximity of a wireless power transmitter. The common wireless charging is more convenient than fussing with a cable, but it needs the devices to be essentially abandoned for a few hours until completely recharged. But according to Ossia’s Cota promises, the power transmitter can be installed anywhere, and simply walking into that room will be enough for your smartphone to immediately start charging on its own, irrespective of active users in that time. More conveniently, the transmitters can be disguised or hidden anywhere, like behind furniture or ceiling tiles.
The Devices
The first collection of Cota-compatible gadgets are finally out of the box. Though the French company Archos is not a common household name in the country, this is an important step for Ossia to steer the future of this innovative technology in the right direction. There are four devices, which will be available for now. While the indoor wireless camera can be installed anywhere, without the concern of its battery life, the smart tracker will start recharging automatically upon returning home. There is also an auto-recharge temperature and air-quality display device. The smart-watch can be worn indefinitely all day and night, to track both daytime activities and sleep behaviors. Cost, exact availability, and the final designs are not finalized yet, outside of the estimated time allotment of 2022.