Indian Airforce Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to become the second Indian to go to space after Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma’s journey on board the Soyuz T-11 in April 1984 as the astronaut will be the pilot on the Axiom Mission 4, or Ax-4.
The Ax-4 will go to the International Space Station (ISS) from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Kennedy Space Centre in Florida this spring, Axiom told reporters on Thursday.
Shukla’s Next Mission
Group Captain Shukla, who is serving in the Indian Air Force (IAF), has also been chosen as an astronaut for India’s Gaganyaan Mission by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
ISRO sent the Indian astronaut to NASA for the Axiom 4 mission.
Peggy Whitson, former NASA astronaut and director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the private Ax-4 mission, while Group Captain Shukla will serve as a pilot, the American space agency NASA told reporters.
Shukla will also do Yoga in space.
‘Extremely Excited’
“I am really excited to go into microgravity and experience space flight on my own. The tempo for the mission has been building up each month. I think we are at a stage wherein all the pieces are kind of coming together. I’m extremely excited to see how this unfolds in the coming months and for the actual space flight as well,” Group Captain Shukla said in response to a question by NDTV.
Ax-4 Mission
Axiom Space’s fourth private crewed mission, Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), to the ISS will further expand commercial spaceflight and private astronaut operations in low Earth orbit.
Ax-4 will be carried by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and utilize the Crew Dragon spacecraft to transport astronauts to the ISS. The mission is part of Axiom Space’s broader vision to develop a commercial space ecosystem, with plans to build the first private space station.
Axiom Space has previously conducted three private astronaut missions to the ISS, with each mission involving trained commercial astronauts, researchers, and specialists. These missions support scientific research, technology demonstrations, and commercial activities in microgravity.
Commercial Access To Space
NASA has been collaborating with private space companies like Axiom Space to increase commercial access to space.
Axiom Space’s long-term goal is to establish an independent orbital station that will replace the ISS once it is retired.
(With inputs from IBNS)
