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Ahead of his historical travel to the International Space Station (ISS), Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla has termed the preparations for the Axiom-4 ngo an "amazing journey" and that helium was highly fortunate to beryllium portion of thing that is "much larger than yourself".
The 39-year-old Indian Air Force aviator is each acceptable to question with 3 different unit members to the ISS onboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, mounted connected a Falcon 9 rocket, that volition lift disconnected from the Kennedy Space Centre successful Florida connected Tuesday (June 10, 2025) astatine 5:52 p.m. IST.
Mr. Shukla, who goes by the nickname "Shux", volition beryllium the 2nd Indian to question to space, 41 years aft his idol Rakesh Sharma undertook a spaceflight successful 1984 onboard the erstwhile Soviet Union's Soyuz spacecraft for an eight-day enactment successful orbit.
"It has been an astonishing journey; these are the moments that truly archer you that you are getting to beryllium a portion of thing that is overmuch larger than yourself. I tin lone accidental however highly fortunate I americium to beryllium a portion of this," Lucknow-born Mr. Shukla said successful a abbreviated video issued by Axiom Space up of Tuesday's (June 10, 2025) launch.
Mr. Shukla's crewmates, Commander Peggy Whitson and ngo specialists Tibor Kapu from Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, picture him arsenic "operational-savvy", "focused" and "wicked smart" erstwhile it comes to abstraction technologies.
"Shux's wisdom, the cognition helium possesses, shows helium could beryllium 130-years-old," said Mr. Kapu, the 2nd Hungarian astronaut to question to abstraction since 1980.
"For me, having him arsenic my aviator successful the dragon capsule is great. He is already operational-savvy and helium is conscionable wicked astute erstwhile it comes to spacecraft technologies," said Mr. Whitson, a seasoned U.S. astronaut who has spent 675 days successful abstraction and undertaken 10 spacewalks.
Mr. Slawosz said Mr. Shukla is precise focussed successful his attack and speedy to respond to situations.
"He is precise focused. He volition spell one, two, three, 4 successful grounds time. I don't adjacent cognize however helium gets determination truthful fast," the Polish astronaut said.
‘A fantastic squad’
Mr. Shukla heaped precocious praise connected his crewmates, describing them arsenic a "fantastic" squad, saying they would beryllium his "friends for life".
SpaceX's Falcon-9 rocket and the Dragon abstraction capsule were rolled retired to the launchpad 39A astatine the KSC successful Florida connected Saturday (June 7, 2025). The Axiom-4 (or Ax-4) unit checked connected the spacecraft that they volition question into the ISS.
"Launch is targeted for 8.22 a.m. ET, with a backup accidental disposable connected Wednesday (June 11, 2025), astatine 8 a.m. ET," SpaceX announced successful an update astir the mission.
The Axiom Space video besides showcases Mr. Shukla's travel from being a kid to becoming an astronaut and being chosen for the ambitious abstraction mission.
"This travel that I americium on...it has been a agelong 1 for me. It started retired somewhere, I didn't cognize that this is the way it is going to yet take," Mr. Shukla said.
"I would accidental that I americium highly fortunate and highly fortunate to person had opportunities to archetypal alert each my life, which is simply a imagination occupation for me, and past to person the accidental to use for the astronaut corps, and present beryllium here," helium said.
Mr. Shukla said that, similar his idol Rakesh Sharma, helium would besides similar to animate the adjacent procreation to instrumentality up abstraction subject arsenic a vocation and strive to go an astronaut.
Published - June 08, 2025 10:05 p.m. IST
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