• Source:JND
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Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three other Axiom-4 (Ax-4) astronauts, who have been aboard the International Space Station (ISS) for 18 days performing pioneering science experiments, will start their return journey to Earth on Monday. The Axiom-4 crew of Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu "Shux" Shukla, and Mission Specialists Slawosz "Suave" Uznanski-Wisniewski and Tibor Kapu are planning to undock from the ISS no sooner than 7:05 AM ET (4:35 PM IST) on Monday. "Back to Earth arrival… splashdown on 15th July at 3:00 PM IST," Union Minister of Science and Technology Jitendra Singh asserted in a social media platform X post.

Desi Farewell, Global Feast

A formal farewell ceremony for the astronauts of Axiom-4 has been scheduled on Sunday evening (India time). The 11 member ISS crew celebrated the closure of their historic mission with a special dinner with the Expedition 73 crew, uniting astronauts from six countries. "One of the most unforgettable evenings I've experienced on this mission was sharing a meal with new friends, Ax-4, aboard the International @Space_Station," US astronaut Jonny Kim said in a post on X last week. "We swapped stories and marvelled at how people from diverse backgrounds and nations came together to represent humanity in space," he said. The diverse cosmic menu comprised rehydrated shrimp cocktails, crackers, and main meals such as chicken and beef fajitas. For dessert, the crew shared a cake made of sweet bread, condensed milk, and walnuts. Shukla added a dash of home by taking along aamras and carrot halwa, and Poland's Slawosz donated traditional pierogi with cabbage and mushrooms.

Historic Milestone For India In Space

Shubhanshu Shukla has etched his name in history as the first Indian to visit the ISS, and only the second Indian to travel to space after Rakesh Sharma’s iconic flight to the Soviet Union’s Salyut-7 station in 1984. Over the 18-day duration, Shukla saw 16 sunrises and sunsets daily, revolving around the globe at 28,000 km an hour at an altitude of around 400 km. Shukla's mission, sponsored at an estimated 550 crore INR by ISRO, will also offer valuable lessons for India's ambitious Gaganyaan human spaceflight program, which is scheduled for launch in 2027.

During his time in orbit, Shukla conducted a microalgae experiment, launching and stowing away samples that can be used to grow food, oxygen, and biofuels for long-duration deep space missions. The Ax-4 crew also enabled research on cerebral blood flow, eye movements, cognitive flexibility, and radiation detection using the Rad Nano Dosimeter. All these tests could make it possible to develop safer and more accommodating habitats for space explorers and provide medical information for people on our planet.

Return Journey And Rehabilitation

Astronaut Ax-4 will board the Dragon spaceship at 2:25 PM IST on Monday, wear their spacesuits, and perform final checks before undocking. Dragon will then automatically separate from the ISS and start its re-entry into Earth's atmosphere for splashdown off the coast of California. NASA added that the spacecraft will bring back more than 580 pounds of payload, hardware, and critical data from 60+ experiments that have been carried out on board. Following splashdown, Shukla will be treated to a week-long rehabilitation regimen by a flight surgeon to ease him into readjusting himself to Earth's gravity, ISRO announced.