Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is now set to travel to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft as part of the Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission, which has been rescheduled for 8 June, Axiom Space and NASA announced.
The mission, originally slated for 29 May, will now lift off from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida at 6:41 pm IST (9:11 am EDT) on 8 June, following a review of the International Space Station’s flight schedule.
NASA, in a post on X, said, "After reviewing @Space_Station flight schedule, NASA and its partners are shifting launch opportunities for several upcoming missions. The new targeted no-earlier-than-launch opportunities, pending operational readiness, are: Axiom Mission 4: 9:11 am EDT, Sunday, June 8."
Shukla’s journey to the ISS comes four decades after Rakesh Sharma’s historic spaceflight aboard Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft in 1984, making him the second Indian to venture into space.
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The Ax-4 crew also includes Slawosz Uznanski, a European Space Agency (ESA) project astronaut, who will become the second Polish astronaut since 1978, and Tibor Kapu, the second Hungarian astronaut since 1980.
The mission will be commanded by Peggy Whitson, the American astronaut who holds the record for the longest cumulative time in space.
During the 14-day mission, Shukla will conduct seven experiments aimed at advancing microgravity research in India, supporting the nation’s ambitious plans to establish its own space station by 2035 and send astronauts to the moon by 2047.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has outlined plans to focus on India-centric experiments aboard the ISS, including tests on sprouting fenugreek (methi) and green gram (moong) in microgravity conditions.
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