Up to £15 million commercial funding could be made available for British science and technology to fly to space, should the proposed mission with Axiom Space proceed, the UK Space Agency announced today.
Two new funding calls – one for science and another for technology demonstrators – have opened, in preparation for an agreement being reached to fly a team of four British astronauts on a commercially-sponsored mission, potentially to the International Space Station.
While the commercial funding for projects is dependent on the mission proceeding, the UK Space Agency is giving scientists, innovators, and businesses the opportunity to submit proposals now to maximise the benefits of a mission in the near term.
The announcement follows the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the UK Space Agency and Axiom Space in October 2023, which outlined the plans to pursue a commercially-sponsored UK astronaut mission, and an initial request for ideas for science and technology.