 "Meet crew members of Axiom-4 mission: Shubhanshu, Sławosz, Tibor and Peggy")
NASA announced on Thursday that Shubhanshu Shukla, group captain in the Indian Air Force (IAF), has been chosen to fly Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4). He will be the first Indian astronaut to reach the International Space Station (ISS) on a private mission.
Apart from the Shukla, Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut and Director of Human Spaceflight at Axiom Space, will lead the commercial mission. The two mission experts are Tibor Kapu of Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, both project astronauts for the European Space Agency.
In the spring of 2025, the US space agency will use a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to launch the mission from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will last up to 14 days. As part of a joint NASA-ISRO mission, the crew will carry out scientific research, outreach initiatives, and commercial microgravity operations.
Axiom-4 mission: Meet the crew members
1. Shubhanshu Shukla
Group captain Shubhanshu Shukla was born in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, on October 10, 1985, and is a famous IAF pilot. Shubhanshu Shukla was commissioned into the IAF fighter wing in June 2006. He is a combat leader and seasoned test pilot who has flown 2,000 hours in a range of aircraft, including the An-32, Jaguar, Hawk, Dornier, MiG-21, MiG-29, and Su-30 MKI.
Shubhanshu Shukla was promoted to the role of group captain in March 2024. Shubhanshu Shukla is also the astronaut-designate for India's first human space flight, the Gaganyaan mission. Forty years after Rakesh Sharma's flight to space station Salyut 7, Mr. Shukla will become the second Indian to reach space.
2. Peggy Whitson
As commander of the second all-private astronaut mission to the International Space Station (ISS), Axiom Mission 2 (Ax-2), Whitson is the most experienced astronaut in American history. She completed three long-duration space flights during her historic NASA career, accruing 665 days in space (now 675 following the Ax-2 mission), longer than any other American or female astronaut in history.
3. Sławosz Uzna?"ski-Wiśniewski
Polish scientist and engineer Sławosz Uzna?"ski-Wiśniewski is making important contributions to science and space exploration. He was chosen from a competitive pool of more than 22,500 applicants to be a part of the European Space Agency's (ESA) Astronaut Reserve Class of 2022, guaranteeing his spot on upcoming missions to the ISS and beyond. Sławosz, who speaks French and English fluently, contributes a variety of linguistic backgrounds to his work.
4. Tibor Kapu
Tibor, a Hungarian mechanical engineer, is an Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) mission specialist. Kapu was born in Nyíregyháza, Hungary, on November 5, 1991. His journey from school to space is quite amazing. Out of 247 applicants, Kapu was chosen as one of four Hungarians for the Hungarian to Orbit (HUNOR) Astronaut Program. In order to conduct top-notch scientific tests and studies on board the International orbit Station (ISS), this esteemed program seeks to send a Hungarian astronaut into orbit.
Shubhanshu Shukla on Axiom- 4 to ISS
In an online press conference held on Thursday, Shukla said the experience on the Axiom Mission 4 would be very well utilised on the Gaganyaan mission.
Shukla stated during the conference that the Gaganyaan mission would make excellent use of the Axiom expedition 4 experience. Shukla was quoted, "I am really, really excited to go into microgravity and experience spaceflight on my own. The tempo for the mission has been building up each month and I think we are at a stage where all the pieces are kind of coming together. I am extremely excited to see how this unfolds in the coming months".
He added, "I also have a personal agenda of capturing my experiences on the station (ISS) through pictures and videos so that I can share these with all the 'Bharatvaasis' back home," he said. "I want them to share this thrilling experience through my eyes, for I truly believe that, even as an individual travelling to space, this is the journey of 1.4 billion people".
Shukla has planned to do some yoga poses prior to the ISS. Meanwhile NASA stated, "Once docked, the private astronauts plan to spend up to 14 days aboard the orbiting laboratory, conducting a mission consisting of science, outreach, and commercial activities."
About the Axiom 4
In addition to India, Poland and Hungary will "realize the return" to human spaceflight with the Axiom Mission 4 or Ax-4 mission, which will be their first government-sponsored flight in nearly 40 years. Axiom-4 will be the first time all 3 countries have conducted a mission aboard the ISS, even though it is these countries' second human spaceflight mission in history.
According to the US space agency, Shukla will be the mission pilot while Peggy Whitson, a former NASA astronaut and Director of Human Spaceflight at Axiom Space, will lead the commercial mission. The two mission experts are Tibor Kapu of Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, both project astronauts for the European Space Agency. According to NASA, the astronauts will execute a mission that includes outreach, scientific, and commercial operations during their 14-day stay in orbit.
NASA other mission
NASA is working to bring back astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, who have been stuck on the ISS for 238 days because of technical issues, during the ongoing preparations of Ax-4. This follows Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX, saying that former US President Donald Trump pushed him to expedite their return.