'Learning like a baby, how to walk and eat in space': Shubhanshu Shukla from Dragon spacecraft
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the 39-year-old Indian Air Force pilot-turned-astronaut, delivered his first personal message from orbit today, just hours after lifting off aboard the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
Strapped into the Dragon capsule, Shukla greeted the nation with a heartfelt, 'Namaskar, mere deshvasiyon.'
'What a ride!' he exclaimed, describing the ascent aboard the Falcon 9 rocket: 'When the ride started, you get pushed back into your seat… then suddenly, nothing. You're floating in a vacuum.'
'I am learning like a baby, how to walk and eat in space,' he added, speaking of the challenges of adapting to microgravity.
This mission carries historic significance, not only for the individual, but for the nation. Shukla is only the second Indian citizen to travel to space, and the first to reach the ISS, following a 41-year gap since Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma's historic flight in 1984.
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Economic Times
5 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Axiom 4 Mission Live: Shubhanshu Shukla enters the International Space Station with the Axiom-4 crew
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Read more at: Indian enters International Space Station: Shubhanshu Shukla & crew dock successfully The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft carrying four Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crew members including Mission Pilot Group Captain Shbhansu Shukla, is orbiting Earth and on its way to the International Space Station after launching from Kennedy Space Centre at noon on Indian Standard Time (IST) Wednesday .Dragon is also carrying Ax-4 Commander Peggy Whitson, and Mission Specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski and Tibor Kapu and will dock to the Harmony module's space-facing port at 4:30 pm IST Flight Engineers Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers will be on duty at the beginning of their shift, monitoring Dragon during its automated approach and rendezvous manoeuvres. After docking, the Ax-4 astronauts will greet the seven Expedition 73 crewmates, call down to Earth for welcoming remarks, then participate in a safety briefing with the station McClain and Ayers, along with the rest of the station crew, worked a normal shift on Wednesday, keeping up with microgravity research and lab Group Captain Shukla, this will be an opportunity to emulate fellow Indian Air Force Officer Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, who flew aboard Soyuz T-11 on 3 April 1984 as part of the Soviet Interkosmos programme. Sharma spent seven days in space on board the Salyut 7 space coverage of the Axiom-4 mission spacecraft will begin at 2:00 PM IST. Show more Was looking forward to this. Crew made me feel welcome and opened their doors for us, Shukla added. Shubhanshu Shukla talks in Hindi, thanks Indians for the love and blessings. He adds that he is looking forward for the next 14 days at the International Space Station. Shubhanshu Shukla is Astronaut #634. 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Read More: Shubhanshu Shukla explains why he is feeling like a baby in space Axiom 4 Mission Live Updates: A Group Captain in the Indian Air Force, Shubhanshu Shukla was selected to be part of India's astronaut corps in 2019 along with fellow officers Prasanth Balkrishnan Nair, Angad Pratap and Ajit Krishnan for the Gaganyaan mission which is likely to be launched in on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Shukla did his schooling from City Montessori School before joining the National Defence was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in 2006, and has over 2,000 hours of flying time on a wide range of aircraft including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-29, Jaguar, and holds an MTech in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, and the three other Gaganyaan astronaut designates underwent extensive training at Russia's Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre and ISRO's Astronaut Training Facility in crewmates on the Axiom-4 mission, commander Peggy Whitson and mission specialists Tibor Kapu from Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, describe him as "operational-savvy", "focused" and "wicked smart" when it comes to space technologies. 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9 minutes ago
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First Post
10 minutes ago
- First Post
Axiom 4 mission: Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla becomes first Indian onboard ISS
The four astronauts were welcomed with warm hugs and handshakes as the Dragon spacecraft docked to the orbital laboratory after a 28-hour journey around Earth read more Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla was the pilot of Axiom 4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) that launched on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. He is only the second Indian ever to go to space. (Photo: Axiom) Indian astronaut and Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, alongside three other astronauts, entered the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday (June 26) evening. They were welcomed with warm hugs and handshakes as the Dragon spacecraft docked to the orbital laboratory after a 28-hour journey around Earth. Gp Capt Shukla has now become the first time an Indian astronaut has travelled to the ISS. The fifth spacecraft in the Dragon series, named Grace, achieved a soft capture with the Harmony module of the space station at 4:01 pm IST. It then took another two hours to establish communication, power links, and pressure stabilisation. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD With inputs from agencies
