Historic Launch of Axiom-4 Mission
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, a former pilot with the Indian Air Force, has made history as he became an astronaut at the age of 39. He sent his inaugural personal message from orbit today, just hours after his launch on the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). This momentous event marks India's return to human spaceflight after a hiatus of 41 years.
In his message, Shukla expressed his excitement, saying, "Hello everyone, namaskar from space. I am thrilled to be here with my fellow astronauts. Wow, what a ride it was. When I was sitting in the capsule on the launchpad, the only thought in my mind was: let’s just go."
Experiencing Space Travel
Shukla described the launch experience, stating, "When the ride started, it was something – you getting pushed back in the seat. It was an amazing ride. And then suddenly nothing. You are floating in a vacuum."
Inside the Crew Dragon spacecraft, which was launched by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Florida's Kennedy Space Center, Shukla shared his experience of space travel. He humorously noted, "I am learning like a baby; how to walk and eat in space."
Crew and Global Support
During his initial hours in space, Shukla reflected on the unique sensation of microgravity, admitting, "I was not feeling very great when we got shot into the vacuum, but I have been told I am sleeping a lot since yesterday."
Shukla is part of a four-member crew for the Ax-4 mission, which includes Commander Peggy Whitson, a seasoned NASA astronaut, along with mission specialists Tibor Kapu from Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland.
His family, along with thousands of spectators at public viewing events across India, Hungary, Poland, and the United States, witnessed the launch. Cheers erupted from locations like Lucknow to Budapest and Gdansk to Houston as the Falcon 9 lifted off from the historic LC-39A pad, the same site used for the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon in July 1969.
Significance of the Mission
With this mission, Shukla becomes the second Indian citizen to travel to space and the first to reach the International Space Station, which orbits Earth at a speed of 7.5 kilometers per second. The last Indian in space was Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, who participated in an Indo-Soviet mission in April 1984.
Originally scheduled for May 29, this flight faced multiple delays due to weather conditions and technical issues with the Falcon-9 rocket and Dragon capsule. NASA, SpaceX, and Axiom conducted extensive anomaly resolution processes to ensure a successful launch.
