INew Delhi: ndian Air Force officer Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to make history as he heads to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft on June 8, marking India’s first human space mission to the ISS in nearly four decades. The launch will take place from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:41 PM IST (9:11 AM EDT).
The mission, named Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), was originally scheduled for May 29 but was postponed following a rescheduling of the ISS flight calendar. The updated launch date was confirmed by Axiom Space, the US-based commercial spaceflight company organizing the mission, in coordination with NASA.
Shukla’s journey to space comes 40 years after Rakesh Sharma, India’s first astronaut, flew aboard the Russian Soyuz spacecraft in 1984.
The Ax-4 mission includes three other international astronauts alongside Shukla:
• Slawosz Uznanski of Poland, a European Space Agency (ESA) project astronaut and the second Polish astronaut since 1978
• Tibor Kapu of Hungary, who will become the second Hungarian astronaut since 1980
• Peggy Whitson, a veteran NASA astronaut who will command the mission and holds the record for the longest cumulative time in space by any American astronaut
During the mission, which will last up to 14 days aboard the ISS, Shukla will conduct seven scientific experiments focusing on microgravity research. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has designed India-specific experiments, including testing the growth of fenugreek (methi) and green gram (moong) seeds in space—an initiative aimed at enhancing India’s expertise in space agriculture and bio-research.
This mission plays a key role in India’s broader space ambitions, including plans to establish a dedicated Indian space station by 2035 and send astronauts to the Moon by 2047. The Ax-4 mission marks a major milestone in India’s growing presence in the global space arena.
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