Indian Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla-led Mission to International Space Station Pushed to June 10

New Delhi: Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s mission to the International Space Station (ISS), scheduled to be launched on June 8 at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Kennedy Space Center in Florida, has now been postponed to June 10, The Hindu reported.

The postponement was announced at a press conference held virtually from the Axiom Mission 4 (AX-4) crew’s quarantine location in Florida, according to the report.

Later, NASA released a statement saying, “NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than 8:22 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, June 10, for launch of the fourth private astronaut mission to the International Space Station, Axiom Mission 4.”

“This shift allows teams to account for predicted inclement weather during the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft transport in addition to completing final processing of the spacecraft ahead of launch,” it stated.

The trip to ISS aboard AX-4 – a commercial flight operated by Houston-based private company Axiom Space – is a collaborative effort between NASA, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and European Space Agency (ESA).

The crew, including Group Captain and ISRO astronaut Shukla, with crew members European Space Agency astronaut Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson and Tibor Kapu of Hungary, will lift off on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft from Launch Complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center.

Peggy Whitson, who is also the director of human spaceflight at Axiom Space, will command the commercial mission, while Shukla will serve as pilot. Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and Tibor Kapu will be the two mission specialists, according to NASA. 

The crew had entered quarantine last week. 

Group Captain Shukla is also one of the four astronaut-designates chosen for the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO’s) Gaganyaan mission, India’s maiden human spaceflight mission. He will be the first Indian astronaut to reach the ISS, as well as the first Indian in space after 40 years.

ISRO, which has paid Rs 5 billion (USD 59 million) to secure a seat for Group Captain Shukla and his training, says the experience he will gain during his trip to the ISS will help India immensely.

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