Shubhanshu Shukla's family speaks with him, awaits his return from space

The family of astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, currently aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of NASA's Axiom-4 mission, on Friday expressed joy and pride after speaking to him, and said they are eagerly awaiting his safe return on July 14.

Speaking to PTI Videos from their Lucknow residence, Shubhanshu's father Shambhu Dayal Shukla said the family is relieved to know that the mission is proceeding smoothly.

"Everything is fine in space. It felt great to see that his mission is going well. He showed us where he works, where he sleeps, his lab, and how his daily routine looks like," he said.

"We felt very happy after talking to him. He explained everything to us very clearly. We are also doing well here and are eagerly looking forward to welcoming him back. Our entire family and extended relatives are happy and waiting for his return," he added.

Shubhanshu's mother Asha Shukla said she was especially moved by the visuals her son shared from space.

"He told us how beautiful the Earth and the universe look from there. He showed us views from the space centre, where he works and stays. It was heartwarming to see all that - ?and even more so to see our child happy and doing well," she said.

Asked if the family is counting the days to his return, Asha said, "Of course, we're waiting. The return also depends on the weather and other conditions. But whenever he comes back, we are ready."  When asked what preparations are being made for his welcome, she smiled and said, "I will cook whatever he wants. He told us that this time, after coming back, he wants to eat everything he hasn't had in the past five-six years due to being abroad. He said he wants to enjoy all his favourite home-cooked food."  His father added that Shubhanshu seemed deeply engaged and happy with the work he is doing aboard the space station.

"We could see that he's enjoying what he's doing in space. We believe that any work done with joy always turns out to be good. Our entire family is proud and reassured knowing that he is safe and happy up there."  The Axiom-4 mission was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre at Florida on June 25 and the Dragon spacecraft docked at the International Space Station on June 26 after a 28-hour journey.

Shukla and his Axiom-4 crew have witnessed 230 sunrises onboard the International Space Station (ISS) and travelled nearly 100 lakh km in space at the end of two weeks on the orbital laboratory.

The Axiom-4 crew, comprising Shukla, Peggy Whitson, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski and Tibor Kapu, also took their final off-duty day on the ISS.

The Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crew has completed close to 230 orbits around the Earth and travelled more than six million miles (96.5 lakh km), an Axiom Space statement said.

During his two-week stay on the space station, Shukla interacted with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, spoke to scientists at ISRO, addressed school students in a live session and also connected to ISRO centres using HAM radio.