I Never Would Have Thought I'd Write This

As background, we watched the launch of Axiom Space's Ax-2 mission this evening (5:37 PM local).  As visibility goes, it was maybe a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10.  Briefly visible, and at best it was behind high clouds that reduced visibility dramatically.  The audio was good, though.  We got a good rumble starting around MECO, as we typically get when the launch trajectory is toward the NE, which this one was.  We didn't see any of the booster return to the KSC but heard the sonic boom of the booster returning to land at on the cape. 

Figuring most people would have known about the successful launch, with the Dragon capsule (Freedom) now on its planned path to dock with the ISS on Monday, I started looking for the story that was not likely to be reported everywhere. 

That's when I found it.  A headline I never thought I'd write.  “Build-A-Bear creates fluffy 'zero-g indicator' for Axiom Space Ax-2 crew”  Wait, who built a what? 

What's a zero-g indicator?  A joke has gotten started in spaceflight.  I don't know for sure when it started but I recall seeing it for a while now.  A couple of years?  Crews will bring a little stuffed animal on board.  It's a zero-g indicator in the same way everything is.  If you hold it out at arm's length and let go of it, it doesn't fall if you're in microgravity.  Likewise, if it falls you're not in microgravity.  The other part of that sentence says this wasn't something they took off a shelf at home, they had it built for this mission.  

The product of a partnership between the custom stuffed animal retailer Build-A-Bear Workshop and Axiom Space, the space services company that organized the launch, the Axiom-2 (Ax-2) zero-g indicator is the first Build-A-Bear doll to fly into space. Named "GiGi," the fluffy toy is dressed in a miniature version of Axiom's AxEMU spacesuit, which will be worn by the next American astronauts to walk on the moon.

"Guests dream big at Build-A-Bear, and the opportunity to partner with Axiom Space as part of the Ax-2 mission and send GiGi, the furry fifth crew member, to space is a special honor that we hope inspires youth across the globe to reach for the stars, pursue adventures and follow their passion," said Sharon Price John, president and CEO at Build-A-Bear, in a statement. "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."

The CollectSpace website says the Axiom Space Bear is available for order now from the Build-A-Bear Workshop and Axiom Space websites for $42 each.

The Axiom Space Bear, a larger version of the Ax-2 zero-g indicator "GiGi," features Build-A-Bear's "Happy Hugs Teddy" wearing Axiom Space's AxEMU spacesuit. (Image credit: collectSPACE.com)