Latest news with #AxiomMission
NDTV
3 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Indian Astronaut's 'Swan' Soft Toy And A Goddess Saraswati Connection
New Delhi: When the Falcon-9 rocket lifts off from Florida's Kennedy Space Centre on June 10, it will carry more than four astronauts and research gear into low Earth orbit. With them will be a small, cuddly, soft toy - a swan. At a pre-flight virtual press conference, the Axiom-4 crew unveiled the mission's zero-gravity indicator, a traditional token carried onboard by astronauts to visually signal the moment the spacecraft reaches orbit and enters weightlessness. This time, the indicator is a swan doll named 'Joy'. It broadly represents the vehicle on which the Hindu goddess of knowledge, Saraswati, travels. Joy is white in colour like a swan and has a black and yellow beak and is the size of one's palm. Each member of the four-person international crew contributed to selecting the swan as a unifying cultural symbol. For Group Captain Shukla, it carries deep religious and philosophical significance. "Swan is believed to have the rare ability to separate milk from water, representing purity, wisdom and grace. Carrying this symbol reminds me of the delicate balance between knowledge and pressure, and it keeps me grounded in the values I hold dear. I feel inspired, fully prepared and confident as I embark on this journey," Mr Shukla said. Astronaut Peggy Whitson, the Commander of the Axiom Mission which is also referred to as Mission Akash Ganga said, "The doll will float freely inside the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule as a marker of microgravity for cameras and the crew. More than just a companion, Joy will signal our arrival in microgravity shortly after launch. Joy represents the shared aspirations of three nations united in their return to human space flight. The swan is rich in cultural symbolism, stands for wisdom in India, resilience in Poland, and grace in Hungary. Through Joy, we'll celebrate our diversity and our unity in the shared journey of space exploration." "I call upon every 'Bharatvasi' to join us, participate, engage and dream boldly about the future," Group Captain Shukla said at a press conference. The Axiom-4 mission was originally scheduled for launch on May 29. It was subsequently rescheduled to June 8 and is now confirmed for June 10 at 5:52 pm IST. Axiom Space confirmed the new schedule during the virtual media briefing, citing readiness of the rocket being delayed due to weather conditions. The mission, operated by Texas-based Axiom Space in partnership with SpaceX and NASA, will transport four astronauts, Mission Commander Peggy Whitson (US), Mission Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla (India), and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland) and Tibor Kapu (Hungary) to the International Space Station (ISS) for a two-week stay. Group Captain Shukla becomes only the second Indian to fly into space, 41 years after Rakesh Sharma's 1984 mission aboard the Soviet Soyuz T-11. He also becomes the first Indian citizen to participate in an international, commercially funded human spaceflight mission involving scientific experiments co-developed with multiple Indian agencies. For Poland and Hungary, the flight marks the first time either nation has sent an astronaut to the ISS.
Mint
15-05-2025
- Science
- Mint
India's Shubhanshu Shukla set to travel to International Space Station on June 8. Who is he? What is his mission?
The launch of the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station, originally set for May 29, has been postponed and is now scheduled for June 8 at 6:41 PM IST, as reported by PTI. The mission will lift off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will pilot the mission, accompanied by three other crew members. The updated launch timeline was announced by Axiom Space, a US-based commercial spaceflight company, in collaboration with NASA. "After reviewing @Space_Station flight schedule, NASA and its partners are shifting launch opportunities for several upcoming missions. The new targeted no-earlier-than-launch opportunities, pending operational readiness, are: Axiom Mission 4: 9:11 am EDT, Sunday, June 8," NASA said in a post on X. Shukla's travel to space, onboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, comes four decades after Rakesh Sharma's iconic spaceflight onboard Russia's Soyuz spacecraft in 1984. Shubhanshu Shukla was born on October 10, 1985, in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. He completed his higher education at City Montessori School in Lucknow. He is married to a dentist from Jankipuram, Lucknow, and the couple has a four-year-old son. Following his schooling, Shukla joined the National Defence Academy and was commissioned into the Indian Air Force (IAF) on June 17, 2006, in the fighter stream. He rose through the ranks and currently holds the position of Group Captain, having previously served as a Wing Commander. Shukla serves as a fighter combat test pilot in the IAF and has accumulated over 2,000 hours of flying experience. He has flown a wide range of aircraft, including the Sukhoi-30MKI, Mig-21, Mig-29, An-32, Dornier, Hawk, and Jaguar. Shubhanshu Shukla is set to carry out seven experiments aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission, PTI reported. Moreover, these experiments are aimed to promote microgravity research in India, aligning with the country's broader ambitions of establishing its own space station by 2035 and sending astronauts to the Moon by 2047. As part of the mission, ISRO has outlined plans to focus on India-centric scientific studies, including experiments involving the sprouting of methi (fenugreek) and moong (green gram) in microgravity conditions, PTI reported. Shubhanshu Shukla's journey marks a significant milestone in India's space exploration efforts. Joining the Ax-4 crew is Slawosz Uznanski, a project astronaut from the European Space Agency (ESA), who will become the second Polish astronaut since 1978. (With inputs from agencies) Key Takeaways Shukla is part of the Axiom-4 mission, highlighting India's growing role in space research. The mission includes experiments aimed at promoting microgravity research in India. Shukla's flight symbolizes a leap towards India's ambition of establishing its own space station by 2035.
