BackMeet GiGi, the teddy bear sent to space on SpaceX's chartered flight
Axiom Space's Ax-2 Mission has sent GiGi teddy bear to the space station along with the four astronauts
PremiumA teddy bear has been sent to the International Space Station to inspire children to pursue a career in science.
Axiom Space's Ax-2 Mission has sent GiGi teddy bear to the space station along with the four astronauts.
Axiom Space partnered with Build-A-Bear Workshop to fly the fluffy, light-brown coloured teddy bear to the space station to motivate children to learn about space and consider engineering, Science, technology, and mathematics as a career.
GiGi joined the Axiom-2 Mission crew as they launched to space from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in Florida on Sunday.
GiGi has been sent to space to continue the tradition of having a zero-gravity indicator inside the spacecraft. The teddy bear has also put on the spacesuit.
“With Build-A-Bear’s 25-year history of creating special moments, our GiGi wearing the next-generation spacesuit, has the wonderful opportunity to be part of history as the Ax-2 crew’s zero-gravity indicator," Sharon Price John, CEO, Build-A-Bear said.
About Axiom Mission -2:
It is the second private mission to the International Space Station organised by Axiom Space. Apart from GiGi's teddy bear, four humans have reached the space station. For the first time, two astronauts from Saudi Arabia joined the mission. Rayyanah Barnawi, a breast cancer researcher, is the first Saudi woman to voyage into space, and career fighter pilot, Al-Qarni is the second Saudi Arabian to go to space. The team also includes Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut, and John Shoffner, a commercila astronaut.
Ax-2 is the second Axiom Space mission in partnership with ISS keyholder NASA.
The private space company offers the voyages for sums that run into the millions of dollars.
The company carried out its first private mission to the ISS in April 2022, sending three businessmen and former astronaut Michael Lopez-Alegria into orbit for 17 days as part of Ax-1.
This time the astronauts will stay for over 10 days in the space station and are likely to return by May-end.
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