Axiom-4 Mission crew reveals launch-day playlist, Shubhanshu Shukla's song choice steals the show
The Axiom-4 Mission, carrying India's Shubhanshu Shukla and three other crew members, lifted off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, at 12.01 pm on Wednesday (June 25).
The crew, comprising Pilot Shukla, Commander Peggy Whitson, and Mission Specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and Tibor Kamu, recently shared their carefully curated launch-day playlist, with each track reflecting astronauts' cultural roots and mirroring their respective journeys to the International Space Station.
Here's the playlist
– Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla: Yun Hi Chala Chal from the movie Swades, by Udit Narayan, Hariharan, Kailash Kher, AR Rahman, and Javed Akhtar, starring Shah Rukh Khan.
Pass the Aux! The #Ax4 crew share their launch-day playlist. pic.twitter.com/YwCp0Is6cF
— Axiom Space (@Axiom_Space) June 25, 2025
– Commander Peggy Whitson: Thunder by Imagine Dragons
– Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski: Supermoce, which translates to Superpowers, is a track by Igo, Mrozu, and Vito Bambino
– Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu: Búvóhely, which translates to Hiding Place, by Quimby, Gábor Barbinek, Tamás Meleg, and Gábor Subicz
The Axiom-4 mission launched on Wednesday (June 25), carrying the crew to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft.
Liftoff of Ax-4! pic.twitter.com/RHiVFVdnz3
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 25, 2025
This is the fourth private astronaut flight from Axiom Space and the first to carry an Indian astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS).
Piloted by India's Shukla, the mission marks a significant milestone, fulfilling the commitment made by US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to send an ISRO astronaut to the station.
The mission will also carry the first astronauts from Hungary and Poland to the space station.
The Axiom Mission 4 crew members
The Ax-4 mission features an international crew from the United States, India. Poland and Hungary.
Former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, Peggy Whitson, is commanding the commercial mission, and ISRO astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is serving as a pilot.
The private mission is also carrying ESA (European Space Agency) project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.
Duration of the mission
The crew will travel to the ISS on a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and is scheduled to spend up to 14 days aboard the orbiting laboratory.
The crew's approximately two-week stay includes conducting a mission comprising science, education, and commercial activities.
It will conclude when the spacecraft exits the space station.
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