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Lucknow To Low Earth Orbit: Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla Heads to Space Lab

Lucknow To Low Earth Orbit: Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla Heads to Space Lab

NDTVa day ago

India is all set to send its second astronaut into space, nearly four decades after Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma made history in 1984. This time, the mission is not with Russia but in collaboration with the United States, under the Indo-US Axiom-4 mission, also referred to as Mission Akash Ganga.
Space history in the making
India's astronaut, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, will walk in the footsteps of Astronaut Neil Armstrong, but Mr Shukla is not going to the moon. On his fortnight mission, Mr Shukla will travel to the orbiting International Space Laboratory.
Astronaut Shukla says, "As I prepare to spend 14 days aboard the ISS, I carry with me not just instruments and equipment, but the hopes and dreams of a billion hearts."
Mr Shukla considers himself fortunate to have opportunity to fly all his life. With this, he wishes to inspire an entire generation, generate curiosity among kids and leave a lasting impact. Recalling his journey, Mr Shukla called it a "long" one and added, "I have been extremely fortunate and lucky to have the opportunities to fly all my life, which was a dream job for me, apply to the astronaut corps, and now, consequently, be here. Probably a week before we arrived at Axiom, I came to know that I would be going. It is my sincere endeavour through my mission to inspire an entire generation back home in the country. I want to use this opportunity to ignite curiosity among kids. Even if this story, my story, can change one life, it will be a huge success for me."
Astronaut Shukla is "extremely excited" to fly to space.
Charming it is since this historic second flight for an Indian astronaut will take place from the same haloed Launch Complex 39 A at the Kennedy Space Center from which Astronaut Neil Armstrong lifted off on the Apollo 11 mission on July 16, 1969, to make history by becoming the first human to step on the moon.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has selected Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, a 39-year-old fighter pilot from the Indian Air Force (IAF), as the prime astronaut for this historic flight. He is currently in pre-launch quarantine, a standard protocol to ensure astronauts are medically fit and isolated from potential infections before lift-off.
Born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Mr Shukla is the youngest among the four astronaut designates trained under India's Gaganyaan program. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, he was commissioned into the IAF on June 17, 2006, in the fighter stream. A decorated Fighter Combat Leader and Test Pilot, he has logged approximately 2,000 hours of flying experience across a wide range of aircraft, including the Su-30 MKI, MiG-21, MiG-29, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, and An-32.
When NDTV asked Group Captain Shukla about his first sortie into space and if he was confident of pulling it off, and having a happy splashdown or happy landing, he replied in his calm style.
"Yes, this is my first sortie to space, and over the past year, we have been training rigorously for this mission. I feel very confident, not just in my ability, but in the ability of this team sitting here to execute this mission successfully," he said.
The Axiom-4 mission, operated by Houston-based Axiom Space in partnership with NASA, will carry a four-member international crew aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). The crew includes Dr Peggy Whitson from the United States as mission commander, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, and Tibor Kapu from Hungary, both serving as mission specialists.
Dr Whitson, a 64-year-old biochemist and former NASA astronaut, is the most experienced American astronaut with 675 days in space. Her extensive experience includes 10 spacewalks totalling over 60 hours, and she currently serves as Director of Human Spaceflight at Axiom Space. Her leadership is expected to provide invaluable mentorship to Mr Shukla during the mission.
The backup astronaut for Mission Akash Ganga is Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, the oldest among the astronaut designates. Born on August 26, 1976, in Thiruvazhiyad, Kerala, Mr Nair is also an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and was awarded the Sword of Honour at the Air Force Academy. Commissioned in 1998, he is a Category-A Flying Instructor and a Test Pilot with over 3,000 hours of flying experience. He has commanded a premier Su-30 squadron and is an alumnus of the United States Staff College.
Experts believe ISRO's decision to select the youngest astronaut as the prime candidate aligns with India's long-term vision for human spaceflight. With plans to send an Indian to the Moon by 2040, grooming younger astronauts ensures continuity and experience for future missions.
Mission Akash Ganga was born out of the India-US joint statement during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the United States in June 2023. The agreement envisioned a collaborative effort between ISRO and NASA to send an Indian astronaut to the ISS, marking a new chapter in Indo-US space cooperation.
During the mission, Mr Shukla-referred to by colleagues as "Shux" because of his call sign -will not only serve as the mission pilot but also conduct scientific research and technology demonstration experiments aboard the ISS. ISRO has also indicated that he will participate in space outreach activities, helping to inspire the next generation of Indian scientists and engineers.
The mission is a significant leap for India's space ambitions. It demonstrates the country's readiness to participate in commercial and international spaceflight programs and lays the groundwork for more complex missions in the future, including lunar exploration.
As Mr Shukla prepares for launch, he carries the hopes of a billion Indians eager to see their nation take its place among the world's leading spacefaring countries. With a seasoned commander like Dr Whitson by his side and a diverse international crew, Mission Akash Ganga promises to be a landmark in India's cosmic journey.
"I have exceptional crewmates," says Mr Shukla, adding, "I will have these crew members for this one flight. But post this mission, these are going to be my friends for life. It has been an amazing journey. These are moments that tell you that you are getting to be a part of something much larger than yourself. I can only say how fortunate I am to be a part of this."

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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Mini House for 60 sqm for Seniors with Toilet and Bath (Click Here) Pre Fabricated Homes | Search Ads Search Now Born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Shukla did his schooling from City Montessori School before joining the National Defence Academy. 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And we'll be complete with all our work this evening, and we'll be ready to support launch as early as tomorrow," he said. "Again, I think this shows the difficulty of getting ready. You can always be prepared, but doing the testing, doing the dry runs, doing the activities with the crew to make sure we are really ready is tremendously important because we always learn something," he pointed out. The emphasis, the SpaceX official said, is on ensuring the flight is a safe one. "And I think one of the benefits of flying frequently and having a fleet of spacecraft is that it gives us the opportunity to review data regularly, and it allows us to look for data, look for small things, find things, improve things, and continue to fly safe. I think when you start assuming things are easy and you stop looking and you start just assuming things will go well, that's when trouble occurs, and we're not in that mode. We're continuing to learn and make sure that we are really ready to go fly," he stressed. Weather Concerns The weather in Florida, where the launch is going to be held, has been unpredictable and has been cited as the main reason for the delay from Sunday to Tuesday and now Wednesday - with Thursday being kept as a backup. This was summed up best by Jimmy Taeger, Launch Weather Officer, 45th Weather Squadron, US Space Force, who said at the conference, "It's always fun forecasting in central Florida." "It's quite dicey sometimes. So basically for the morning time period on Wednesday the 11th and also Thursday the 12th, there's just a possibility of seeing some isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms. Typically with the pattern that's going to be set up, we can sometimes have showers and thunderstorms right off the coast first in the mornings, and then later in the day, they tend to push further inland with the sea breeze," he said. "So there's a possibility that some could be just off the coast. It could also be right over the launch pad, which is why there's also that flight through precipitation risk, but it doesn't look like it's going to be widespread. So the POV, that probability violation number, is on the lower end, 20% for Wednesday the 11th and 25% for Thursday the 12th," he added. The winds, Mr Taeger said are pretty strong for the ascent corridor but are expected to weaken. "So that does look better by Wednesday and especially into Thursday, and our precipitation and lightning risk is just going to continue because we have a stalled boundary that's pretty close to where the ascent corridor is, and there's just going to be some lingering showers and thunderstorms. So it will depend upon when it gets closer... but it doesn't look like that boundary is going to go anywhere at this time," he predicted. Musk-Trump Tussle Impact? SpaceX's William Gerstenmaier was also asked whether the very public fallout between US President Donald Trump and the company's founder and CEO Elon Musk would have an impact on the mission, given that it is supplying both the Falcon-9 rocket and the Dragon capsule - which will carry the crew - being used, and he answered that they are focused on the job at hand. "In this environment, it's tremendously important for us to really stay focused on this mission. You know, I described to you how hard these missions are, and when you get complacent and you assume it's easy, problems can occur," he said. "With this Axiom mission, we absolutely need to avoid a lot of this stuff that's happening on the outside and really stay focused on what we're doing today and keep the teams focused on looking at the vehicles, looking at the procedures, looking at the process, make sure that this international crew can have a great time on board the International Space Station, do tremendous science and research, and return safely home to their families," he stressed.

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