Shubhanshu Shukla back in India tomorrow, to join National Space Day and meet PM Modi
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, who piloted the successful Axiom-4 mission to the ISS, is returning to India tomorrow. He is expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday and will attend National Space Day celebrations on August 23.
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the 21st-century space hero of India, is returning back to his country, where he piloted the successful Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS). It is his first homecomingsince the end of the historic trip in which he conducted a number of experiments related to India in space.
It is reported that Mr Shukla might have an audience with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, where he is expected to brief him on his mission. On August 23 he will also participate in the National Space Day celebrations. Shukla posted a smiling photograph he had taken during his flight, sharing mixed feelings – he is sad because he is leaving his international colleagues and eager to see his family and other Indians.
Astronaut reflects on journey
Shukla discussed in his post the friendships he developed when on the mission and the life lessons he got out of travelling to space. He used the words of his commander Peggy Whitson, who used to tell her team that there is one thing that remained true in spaceflight, and that is change. He further added that his travel was symbolic of the balance between departures and new endings, an emotion that reflects the greater reason behind exploration.
Key role in Gaganyaan mission
The astronaut had been training over a year at NASA, Axiom, and SpaceX facilities prior to his flight. His recorded accounts will henceforth be used as an essential guidebook to the first human spaceflight programme in India, Gaganyaan. The mission focuses on launching an Indian astronaut into space by a native rocket, and India will be only the 4th country to do it.
Besides Gaganyaan, India is also laying down its plans into the future, including its own Bharatiya Antariksh Station in the next ten years. Another goal that PM Modi has given is to send an Indian to the moon by 2040. Though the LVM3 rocket of India is ready to be upgraded in order to carry human beings in space, issues are still there regarding the development of the crew module and life support systems, which are to be developed indigenously.