New Delhi: Indian Air Force Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla has been selected as the prime astronaut for the upcoming India-US mission to the International Space Station (ISS), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced.
A joint ISRO-NASA effort for the ISS was envisaged in a joint statement signed between India and the US during the official state visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2023.
Towards the goal of furthering the ISRO-NASA joint effort, ISRO’s Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) has entered into a Space Flight Agreement (SFA) with Axiom Space Inc., USA, the NASA-identified service provider for its upcoming Axiom-4 mission to the ISS, the Indian space agency said on Friday.
The National Mission Assignment Board has recommended two Gaganyatris as prime and backup mission pilots for this mission. These include Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla (prime) and Group Captain Prashant Balakrishnan Nair (backup).
ISRO said in a statement that the assigned crew members will be finally approved to fly to the International Space Station by the Multilateral Crew Operations Panel (MCOP). ISRO said that the recommended Gaganyatris will start their training for the mission from the first week of August.
During the mission, Gaganyaan will carry out selected scientific research and technology demonstration experiments on the ISS as well as engage in space outreach activities. The experiences gained during this mission will be beneficial for the Indian Human Space Programme and will also strengthen human spaceflight cooperation between ISRO and NASA.
Gaganyaan project envisages demonstrating human spaceflight capability by launching a crew of 3 members into a 400 km orbit for a 3-day mission and returning them safely to earth after landing in Indian sea waters.
In February this year, PM Modi had announced the names of four selected Indian Air Force pilots, Group Captain Prashant Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla, who will be part of India’s first human space flight programme. It is scheduled to be launched in 2024-25. The four astronauts were trained at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Russia.