• Source:JND
Add as a preferred

Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla made history by becoming the first Indian to receive a haircut in microgravity aboard the International Space Station. US astronaut Nichole Ayers, a Major in the US Air Force with 122 days of space experience, gave Shukla the rare hairdo while he was on an 18-day mission at the ISS.

No option of shower in space

Notably, Shukla's haircut came with a significant space rule-- no option for a shower, but you have to keep yourself clean. This unique experience was part of Shukla's stay on the ISS, where he completed seven microgravity experiments and participated in over 60 experiments across various fields.

Imagine a cosmic salon with floating scissors and levitating shampoo - but reality is far more fascinating. In space, haircuts are a logistical challenge due to zero gravity, no sinks, and no floor to sweep hair onto. Astronauts use specialised vacuum clippers that suck up hair as it's cut to prevent clogging life support systems.

A photo of Group Shukla's space salon session, shared by astronaut Nichole Ayers, showcases the uniqueness of microgravity grooming. This isn't just a quirky moment - space haircuts are essential for astronaut life, aiding in mental and physical prep for re-entry. As the Axiom-4 crew prepares for splashdown, personal hygiene takes centre stage.

Shubanshu Shukla homecoming

Shukla and three other astronauts, part of the Axiom Space Mission-4 (Ax-4), returned Earth's and splashdown on Tuesday. Shukla, along with fellow astronauts Peggy Whitson (US), Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland), and Tibor Kapu (Hungary), boarded SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft "Grace" at 3:30 a.m. CT (2 PM IST) on Monday. After an extraordinary stay aboard the orbital laboratory, the Ax-4 crew is scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California at 3:01 p.m. IST (4:31 AM CT)."Dragon and the Ax-4 crew are on track to reenter Earth's atmosphere and splash down off the coast of San Diego," Space X shared in a post on social media platform X.

"Dragon will also announce its arrival with a brief sonic boom prior to splashing down in the Pacific Ocean," it added. The de-orbit burn is expected to take place at 2:07 pm IST over the Pacific Ocean as the spacecraft re-enters the Earth's atmosphere. Final preparations include detaching the capsule's trunk (at 2:26 pm IST) and orienting the heat shield ahead of atmospheric entry, which will expose the spacecraft to temperatures nearing 1,600 degrees Celsius. Parachutes will deploy in two stages -- first stabilising chutes at about 5.7 km altitude at 2:57 pm IST, followed by the main parachutes at roughly two km before splashdown.

During his more than two weeks' stay aboard the ISS, Shukla completed over 310 orbits, traversing an astounding 1.3 crore kilometres -- equivalent to travelling 33 times the distance between Earth and the Moon. The crew also witnessed over 300 sunrises and sunsets from the orbital lab.

(With inputs from agency)

Also In News