Private Astronauts Bring Curry, Paprika, Perogies to ISS

India, Poland, and Hungary launched their first astronauts in more than 40 years on Wednesday, sending them on a private flight to the International Space Station. The three countries shared the tab for the two-week mission. Axiom Space, the Houston company that arranged the deal, put the ticket price at more than $65 million per customer.

• SpaceX's Falcon rocket blasted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center two weeks late because of space station leak concerns. The capsule on top carried not only the three newcomers to space—none of whom were alive when their countries' first astronauts launched—but America's most experienced astronaut, Peggy Whitson.

• Besides Whitson, the crew includes India's Shubhanshu Shukla, a pilot in the Indian Air Force; Hungary's Tibor Kapu, a mechanical engineer; and Poland's Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a radiation expert.
• In addition to dozens of experiments, the astronauts are flying food that celebrates their heritage: Indian curry and rice with mango nectar; spicy Hungarian paprika paste; and freeze-fried Polish pierogies.
• Once opposed to nontraditional station guests, NASA now throws out the welcome mat, charging for their food and upkeep while insisting that an experienced astronaut accompany them.

• Hungary's first astronaut, Bertalan Farkas, cheered on Kapu from the launch site. Farkas launched with the Soviets in 1980, taking along a teddy bear in a cosmonaut suit that went back up with Kapu.
• Uznanski-Wisniewski carried up the Polish flag worn on his predecessor's spacesuit, noting that Miroslaw Hermaszewski was his biggest supporter until his death in 2022.
• Shukla said before the flight that he hopes "to ignite the curiosity of an entire generation in my country" and drive innovation. Like his crewmates, he plans several outreach events with those back home. "I truly believe that even though I, as an individual, am traveling to space, this is the journey of 1.4 billion people," he said." India's first astronaut, Rakesh Sharma, couldn't make it to Florida for the launch; Shukla said he's been a mentor "at every step of this journey" and is flying a surprise gift for him.
• While others born in India and Hungary have flown in space before—including NASA astronaut Kalpana Chawla, who died aboard the shuttle Columbia in 2003, and two-time space tourist Charles Simonyi, of Microsoft fame—they were US citizens at the time of launch.