Latest news with #Axiom-4
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Science
- The Hindu
IIST, KAU launching post-flight studies on crop seeds that are back from International Space Station
The Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) and the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) have begun post-flight studies on the crop seeds that were sent to the International Space Station (ISS) on the Axiom-4 mission. After Group Capt. Shubhanshu Shukla and the other astronauts returned to earth after the 18-day mission, the IIST had taken possession of the seeds towards July-end. Using a portion of the seeds, IIST's Space Biology Lab, which is leading the 'Crop Seeds on ISS' project, has launched germination studies under lab conditions. But most of the 4000-plus seeds have been transferred to the KAU's College of Agriculture at Vellayani here for field studies, which is a collaborative initiative between the two institutions. The entire research project is expected to take two-and-a-half to three years to complete, IIST sources said. Seeds of Jyothi and Uma rice varieties, Kanakamani (horse gram), Vellayani Vijay (tomato), Thilakathara (sesame) and Soorya (brinjal/eggplant) were sent to ISS on the Axiom-4 mission which lifted off on June 25 on a SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket. The biology payload consisted of dry seeds that were packed and exposed to microgravity conditions on the ISS and returned to earth. The 'Crop Seeds on ISS' project was achieved through multi-level agreements among ISRO and the European Space Agency, ISRO's Human Spaceflight Centre (HSFC) and IIST and IIST and KAU.
Economic Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Axiom Space expands partnership with India for future human spaceflights and space station development
Synopsis Axiom Space, having facilitated Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla's ISS journey, aims to strengthen its Indian partnership through further human spaceflights and its space station program. CEO Tejpaul Bhatia emphasizes India's growing prominence in the global space sector, highlighting collaborative opportunities between US, India, NASA, ISRO, and Axiom. Agencies US-based Axiom Space, which recently sent Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to space as part of its Axiom-4 mission, plans to deepen its partnership with India, in human spaceflights and its space station programme, said its chief executive Tejpaul Bhatia. Speaking to ET's Kiran Rathee, Bhatia underlined India's growing importance in the global space ecosystem underscored by several endeavours in the past few years, including missions to the moon and the sun. Axiom is the first private company to develop a commercial space station, slated to start initial operations by 2027. Edited excerpts from an interview: What was the significance of the Axiom-4 mission? The mission has a lot of significance for Axiom, for the world, and for India. We are now the only company to have done any commercial astronauts' missions to the ISS (International Space Station). For India, Poland and Hungary, it's their first astronauts to the ISS. With the second astronaut ever and India as pilot, it is a very big signal to the world of India's space power position. Through the tieups between US, India, Nasa, Isro, and Axiom, we have created a new era of collaboration that has brought together multiple capabilities and opened up space for everyone. So, it's a kind of outsourcing wherein Isro has given the job to Axiom to send its astronaut to space? Correct, it would be no different in my opinion like Isro utilising Skyroot (Indian space startup for space launch services) to send cargo or payloads to space. Do you have more missions planned with Isro or the Indian government? The intention and the desire are much more than the Axiom-4 mission. I expect to see significant missions coming up in the future, from more human spaceflights to our space station programme, and to the spacesuit that Axiom is building. (Nasa's astronauts will use an Axiom spacesuit for the Artemis lunar mission). I think India has a very big responsibility now on the world stage to be a leader in the new space economy. Could we look forward to more human spaceflights in future with Indian astronauts? Yes. Axiom is also providing services to any private astronaut who wants to go to space. How does it work? With this opening up of access to space through Axiom, a private individual could also do this. Thcommitment here is no different than a nation or a professional astronaut, which is, eight months to a year of rigorous training. You can't just go to the ISS for fun. You have to know what you're doing, be very well prepared, very well-trained and certified to go up. So, anyone from India, with the means, could also do this. How much do you charge for sending an astronaut to ISS? I can't speak specifics of any particular contract but in general, a pilot seat is $70 million, and mission specialist seats are $65 million each. Every deal we do with every nation is different and many times, the relationships are much larger than just that one mission or flight. You have started work on the next mission. Have you finalised the astronauts? My team at any given point now is selling three years in advance. The future, thankfully to India, is very bright for all nations to have an opportunity to be up there. You are already booked for the next three missions. Do those missions have any Indian connection? I can't speak of the nature of the contract. Our relationship with India is extremely powerful and valuable. These government relationships for Axiom, particularly the one with India, is much larger than any one mission. In those future missions, there are some Indian connections, that's about the most I could possibly say there. But how these manifest over the next several years, I think, will also mirror what happens on the geopolitical stage for space. Many people are speaking of India as the fourth space superpower and they have proven it now over the last several years between the missions to the moon, the launches, the goals for station and mission to the sun but also with an Indian astronaut to the ISS. It's very much the time for India's leadership on the global stage. When will the Axiom space station be completed or attached to the ISS? For the attachment, we are targeting 2027 for the first module, to connect, and then about a module every year. The plan is that we disconnect and become an independent station well before ISS plans to deorbit (in 2031). What will be the station's capacity? The plan for the first five modules includes two habitats, so eight people living and working and it is designed to be modular and expandable.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Axiom Space expands partnership with India for future human spaceflights and space station development
US-based Axiom Space , which recently sent Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to space as part of its Axiom-4 mission , plans to deepen its partnership with India, in human spaceflights and its space station programme, said its chief executive Tejpaul Bhatia. Speaking to ET's Kiran Rathee, Bhatia underlined India's growing importance in the global space ecosystem underscored by several endeavours in the past few years, including missions to the moon and the sun. Axiom is the first private company to develop a commercial space station , slated to start initial operations by 2027. Edited excerpts from an interview: What was the significance of the Axiom-4 mission? Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program The mission has a lot of significance for Axiom, for the world, and for India. We are now the only company to have done any commercial astronauts' missions to the ISS (International Space Station). For India, Poland and Hungary, it's their first astronauts to the ISS. With the second astronaut ever and India as pilot, it is a very big signal to the world of India's space power position. Through the tieups between US, India, Nasa, Isro, and Axiom, we have created a new era of collaboration that has brought together multiple capabilities and opened up space for everyone. So, it's a kind of outsourcing wherein Isro has given the job to Axiom to send its astronaut to space? Correct, it would be no different in my opinion like Isro utilising Skyroot (Indian space startup for space launch services) to send cargo or payloads to space. Do you have more missions planned with Isro or the Indian government? Live Events The intention and the desire are much more than the Axiom-4 mission. I expect to see significant missions coming up in the future, from more human spaceflights to our space station programme, and to the spacesuit that Axiom is building. (Nasa's astronauts will use an Axiom spacesuit for the Artemis lunar mission). I think India has a very big responsibility now on the world stage to be a leader in the new space economy. Could we look forward to more human spaceflights in future with Indian astronauts? Yes. Axiom is also providing services to any private astronaut who wants to go to space. How does it work? With this opening up of access to space through Axiom, a private individual could also do this. Thcommitment here is no different than a nation or a professional astronaut, which is, eight months to a year of rigorous training. You can't just go to the ISS for fun. You have to know what you're doing, be very well prepared, very well-trained and certified to go up. So, anyone from India, with the means, could also do this. How much do you charge for sending an astronaut to ISS? I can't speak specifics of any particular contract but in general, a pilot seat is $70 million, and mission specialist seats are $65 million each. Every deal we do with every nation is different and many times, the relationships are much larger than just that one mission or flight. You have started work on the next mission. Have you finalised the astronauts? My team at any given point now is selling three years in advance. The future, thankfully to India, is very bright for all nations to have an opportunity to be up there. You are already booked for the next three missions. Do those missions have any Indian connection? I can't speak of the nature of the contract. Our relationship with India is extremely powerful and valuable. These government relationships for Axiom, particularly the one with India, is much larger than any one mission. In those future missions, there are some Indian connections, that's about the most I could possibly say there. But how these manifest over the next several years, I think, will also mirror what happens on the geopolitical stage for space. Many people are speaking of India as the fourth space superpower and they have proven it now over the last several years between the missions to the moon, the launches, the goals for station and mission to the sun but also with an Indian astronaut to the ISS. It's very much the time for India's leadership on the global stage. When will the Axiom space station be completed or attached to the ISS? For the attachment, we are targeting 2027 for the first module, to connect, and then about a module every year. The plan is that we disconnect and become an independent station well before ISS plans to deorbit (in 2031). What will be the station's capacity? The plan for the first five modules includes two habitats, so eight people living and working and it is designed to be modular and expandable. Economic Times WhatsApp channel )
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Science
- The Hindu
Shubhanshu Shukla's ISS experience to prove valuable for Gaganyaan: ISRO chairman V. Narayanan
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla's experience on the International Space Station (ISS) will prove valuable for Gaganyaan, India's own upcoming human spaceflight programme, V. Narayanan, Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), said on Sunday (August 10, 2025). Dr. Narayanan was addressing the 13th convocation of the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) in virtual mode. Stressing the importance of safety in such missions, Dr. Narayanan reiterated how the Indian side had insisted that the Axiom-4 mission, in which Group Capt. Shukla was a crew member, should be cleared for lift-off only after rectifying the leakage detected on the rocket on July 10. 'Originally the launch was scheduled for June 11. On June 10 we came to know that there was a small leakage in the Falcon 9 rocket of the SpaceX team. And it was the Indian team that raised the objection that without it being corrected, the rocket should not take off,' he said. The launch was put off, thereby ensuring the safety of the astronauts, he recalled. The leak was corrected, and the launch subsequently took place on July 25. Group Capt. Shukla and other crew members returned safely after spending 18 days in the ISS. Dr. Narayanan also recounted how India, from having launched its space programme with a sounding rocket from America and payload from France in the 1960s, has emerged as a major player in the international space scene. He described the recent successful NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission as an example of this achievement. The country has at present 56 satellites in orbit. In two to three years, the number is likely to increase by three times, he said.
Indian Express
7 days ago
- Science
- Indian Express
Shubhanshu Shukla's homecoming: PM Modi to felicitate India's first four astronauts on Chandrayaan-3 anniversary
India's second National Space Day on August 23 will be marked by a special homecoming — the country's first four astronauts will be felicitated in the Capital by the Prime Minister, including Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who recently returned from the International Space Station (ISS). The celebration, to be held at Bharat Mandapam, will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is expected to meet astronauts Prashanth Nair (48), Ajith Krishnan (43), Angad Pratap (43), and Shubhanshu Shukla (39). National Space Day commemorates India's historic Chandrayaan-3 mission, which in 2023 achieved the first-ever landing on the Moon's south pole. This year, the event will also double up as a welcome ceremony for Shukla, who splashed down off the coast of California on July 15 after an 18-day mission aboard the ISS as part of the Axiom-4 crew. Since then, he has been in Houston, Texas, re-acclimatising to Earth's gravity — with videos showing him struggling to regain balance, a common post-mission phenomenon. Post-mission debriefing sessions with NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX are underway through early August, with some already held in the presence of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) officials, sources said. While on board the ISS, Shukla had a live interaction with PM Modi, telling him, 'My friends here have asked when we can go on Gaganyaan.' During the Axiom-4 farewell ceremony, he reflected on India's transformation, saying: 'Forty-one years ago, an Indian came to space and told us how India looks from up above. I think we all want to know how today's India looks from space. I will tell you. Today's India looks ambitious from space, today's India looks fearless, today's India looks confident, today's India looks full of pride — and because of these reasons, I want to say again that today's India still looks saare jahan se achha.' According to sources, the decision to include all four astronauts in the August 23 ceremony — and not just Shukla — was deliberate. 'It was felt that the ceremony should include not just Shubhanshu but all four astronauts instead, as all of them are equally trained and qualified,' said one official. The astronauts are part of India's human spaceflight programme, Gaganyaan, under which ISRO will undertake three uncrewed missions (G1, G2, and G3), two crewed missions (H1 and H2), and three precursor missions leading to the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (G4, BAS-1, and G5). The first uncrewed flight is expected in the last quarter of this year, with the first crewed flight by early 2027. BAS-1, the mission that will launch the first module of India's own space station, is planned for 2028. The goal is to complete a five-module space station by 2035. The inaugural National Space Day last year was attended by President Droupadi Murmu, and showcased India's space achievements and the societal impact of space exploration. Anonna Dutt is a Principal Correspondent who writes primarily on health at the Indian Express. She reports on myriad topics ranging from the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes and hypertension to the problems with pervasive infectious conditions. She reported on the government's management of the Covid-19 pandemic and closely followed the vaccination programme. Her stories have resulted in the city government investing in high-end tests for the poor and acknowledging errors in their official reports. Dutt also takes a keen interest in the country's space programme and has written on key missions like Chandrayaan 2 and 3, Aditya L1, and Gaganyaan. She was among the first batch of eleven media fellows with RBM Partnership to End Malaria. She was also selected to participate in the short-term programme on early childhood reporting at Columbia University's Dart Centre. Dutt has a Bachelor's Degree from the Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune and a PG Diploma from the Asian College of Journalism, Chennai. She started her reporting career with the Hindustan Times. When not at work, she tries to appease the Duolingo owl with her French skills and sometimes takes to the dance floor. ... Read More
