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PM Modi Hails Shukla as ISS Science Mission Begins

The Axiom-4 pilot is leading life-science experiments during a two-week stay on the International Space Station

Shubhanshu Shukla, on board the International Space Station, spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
A Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Axiom-4 crew of four astronauts lifted off from Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A on a mission to the International Space Station on Wednesday. In pic: India's Shubhanshu Shukla.
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Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who is aboard the International Space Station as part of a commercial mission operated by Axiom Space, during an interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Overview

  • Shukla arrived aboard the ISS with a multinational crew on June 26 after docking at Harmony module’s space-facing port
  • The four-member team will conduct about 60 experiments over two weeks, with Shukla at the helm of seven life-science and plant-biology studies
  • In a video conference with Prime Minister Modi, the astronaut noted that Earth appears without borders from orbit and that India looks grander than on maps
  • Shukla brought traditional Indian foods including gajar ka halwa, moong dal halwa and aamras to share with his crewmates, highlighting cultural diplomacy in space
  • The private Axiom-4 mission, operated by Axiom Space with SpaceX, NASA and ISRO, serves as a stepping stone for India’s Gaganyaan human spaceflight initiative