India back in space: Shukla docks at ISS aboard SpaceX Dragon ‘Grace’
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New Delhi: After a wait of over four decades, India made space history again as astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla successfully docked at the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, becoming the first Indian to enter the orbiting laboratory and only the second Indian in space — 41 years after Rakesh Sharma’s landmark mission in 1984.
Shukla, born in Lucknow, is part of Axiom Space’s fourth private astronaut mission (Ax-4), which includes a four-member international crew. The mission launched from NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in Florida aboard a new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft named ‘Grace’, lifted by the Falcon 9 rocket at 2:31 a.m. EDT (12 noon IST).
The crew — Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla, and Mission Specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski (Poland) and Tibor Kapu (Hungary) — docked to the space-facing port of the Harmony module at 6:30 a.m. ET (4:00 p.m. IST), confirmed by SpaceX in a post on social media: “Docking confirmed!”
Speaking from space, Group Captain Shukla expressed his excitement: “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.”
Describing the launch experience, he added, “When the ride started, you get pushed back in the seat. It was an amazing ride. And then suddenly nothing — you’re floating in a vacuum.” He continued, “I am learning like a baby — how to walk and eat in space.”
Shukla also brought a touch of home with him — carrying carrot halwa, moong dal halwa, and mango nectar to enjoy traditional Indian flavours while in space.
This mission marks a major milestone for India’s participation in human spaceflight. Shukla called it “the journey of India’s human space flight,” reflecting the broader aspirations of India’s growing space ambitions.
Once onboard the ISS, Shukla will lead a series of pioneering experiments focusing on food and space nutrition, under a collaborative initiative between ISRO, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), and NASA. These experiments are aimed at understanding sustainable life-support systems for future long-duration space missions.
One key area of research will explore the effects of microgravity and space radiation on edible microalgae, known for their high nutritional value and potential as food sources for future astronauts. The research will evaluate the growth, behaviour, and biochemical changes of multiple algal species in space, with comparisons to those grown on Earth, using advanced techniques such as transcriptomic, proteomic, and metabolomic analyses.
Beyond its scientific significance, the Axiom-4 mission reaffirms India’s rising profile as a global technology powerhouse, contributing to international missions and sustainable innovation in space.
With IANS inputs
