India's own astronaut training & space psychology protocols ready

Time of India

5 days ago

Pic credit: IAF
BENGALURU: In a milestone for India's human spaceflight ambitions, the country has indigenously validated its first medical and psychological selection and training protocols for astronauts.
The validation was achieved through the successful completion of 'Anugami', a ten-day — July 7 to 17 — human space analogue experiment conducted jointly by the Indian Air Force's (IAF) Institute of Aerospace Medicine (IAM) and ICMR, in Bengaluru.
The exercise, part of the larger Gaganyaan Analogue Experiment (Ganex) that is aimed at shaping India's long-term human spaceflight programme. Until now, astronaut preparation in India has leaned heavily on international collaborations, with candidates sent abroad for specific mission training.
But Ganex marks a shift towards building indigenous systems that can train, monitor, and prepare Indian astronauts at hone for future missions.
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Diverse Participants
At the heart of Anugami was a diverse crew designed to simulate real-world complexities of human space missions. Group Captain Angad Pratap, a Gaganyaan astronaut-designate led the mission.
While the other two participants were Commander Rajiv Prasanna, a naval MiG-29K pilot with survival training experience, and Mohana Sai Akula, an independent analogue astronaut and civilian researcher from the Centre for Advanced Research in Space Psychology at IAM.
This mix allowed the team to capture data across a range of performance baselines—from elite military pilots to civilian scientists—reflecting the broader participation India envisions for its future space programme.
The ten-day mission, sources said, tested protocols that go beyond standard astronaut training and maintained international standards.
For nine and a half days, the crew lived in a closed, space station-like environment, adhering to strict food and sleep routines, conducting onboard scientific experiments, and managing interpersonal dynamics in isolation. The final segment focused on launch and re-entry simulations, mirroring human spaceflight procedures.
Key Tests
Among the key tests were yoga and mindfulness routines adapted for microgravity, and terra-farming experiments using controlled light environments to study plant growth in space-like conditions.
Medical emergency management was a central part of the exercise. The crew rehearsed responses to scenarios such as panic attacks, eye injuries from foreign objects, and fractured limbs. By the mission's end, participants could independently perform basic medical checks, including ECG and EEG tests, using simple protocols designed for space conditions.
Civilian Astronaut
An emotional and cognitive monitoring system called ECHO (Emotional and Cognitive Health Observation) was also tested. This system mapped mood patterns to specific triggers and monitored how psychological interventions—such as meditation or structured communication—helped the crew recover from stress or fatigue.
Crucially, Anugami's outcomes will inform not just the human spaceflight missions but the country's plans for its own space station project. The data collected helps tailor astronaut training frameworks to different backgrounds.
'For civilian researchers, clearer cognitive and physical benchmarks have now been established. For military-trained personnel, the protocols adjust for prior experience in high-performance or survival environments,' one source said.
'We are building for the long term, creating a spectrum of selection and training models for various types of Indian citizens, not just career test pilots or air force crew,' another source said.
Eyes On Future
According to the Indian Air Force, Anugami marks a leap forward in the IAF's contribution to the Indian space programme.
The mission was launched by DK Singh, director of Isro's Human Space Flight Centre, and concluded in the presence of Air Marshal Sandeep Thareja, director general of medical services (Air).
Ganex will now continue with further experiments. Future simulations are likely to take place in extreme environments such as submarines, oceanic vessels, the Rann of Kutch, or Ladakh, feeding into a broader roadmap for India's human spaceflight future.