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Shubhanshu Shukla Axiom-4 Mission LIVE updates: 4 decades later, second Indian heads to space today
Shubhanshu Shukla Axiom-4 Mission LIVE updates: Following several postponements, Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, along with three international crewmates, is scheduled to depart for the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday. SpaceX has confirmed that weather conditions are currently 90 per cent favourable for launch.
According to NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX, lift-off for the fourth private astronaut mission— Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4)—is now set for 12:01 PM IST on Wednesday, 25 June. The mission will launch from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The crew will be transported aboard a new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, launched via the company's Falcon 9 rocket. Docking with the ISS is expected at approximately 4:30 PM IST on Thursday, 26 June.
Shubhanshu Shukla Axiom-4 Mission: Crew composition and roles
The mission will be commanded by Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut and currently Axiom Space's Director of Human Spaceflight. Shubhanshu Shukla, representing the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), will serve as the pilot.
Two mission specialists complete the crew: Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a project astronaut with the European Space Agency (ESA) from Poland, and Tibor Kapu, part of Hungary's HUNOR programme (Hungarian to Orbit).
Shubhanshu Shukla Axiom-4 Mission: Delays due to technical, weather issues
The Axiom-4 mission had been delayed several times—initially because of adverse weather conditions and later due to technical concerns. Leaks were detected first in the Falcon 9 rocket and subsequently in a Russian module on the ISS.
The launch was cleared after NASA and Russia's space agency Roscosmos reviewed recent repairs in the transfer tunnel located in the aft section of the ISS's Zvezda service module.
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Who are the key members?
The commercial mission will be commanded by Peggy Whitson, a former Nasa astronaut and currently Axiom Space's Director of Human Spaceflight. Isro astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will serve as the mission's pilot. Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, a project astronaut with the European Space Agency (ESA) from Poland, and Tibor Kapu of Hungary's HUNOR programme will take on the roles of mission specialists.
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Axiom Mission LIVE Updates: Who is Shubhanshu Shukla?
Shubhanshu Shukla, born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, completed his schooling at City Montessori School before enrolling in the National Defence Academy. He was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in 2006 and holds a Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering from the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru. Along with the three other Gaganyaan astronaut designates, Shukla received intensive training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in Russia and ISRO's Astronaut Training Facility in Bengaluru.
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