Perspective: INDIA'S BIG LEAP IN 40 YEARS | 25 June, 2025

Sansad Tv

In a historic leap, India has returned to human spaceflight after 41 years. The Axiom-4 mission successfully launched today from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla to the International Space Station — making him only the second Indian in space after Rakesh Sharma in 1984.Riding a SpaceX Crew Dragon atop a Falcon 9 rocket, the US-led commercial mission also includes astronauts from Poland and Hungary — marking a proud milestone for all three nations. For India, Ax-4 is more than a mission. It signals the country’s growing stature among spacefaring nations. As ISRO prepares for its own Gaganyaan human spaceflight, a future Bharatiya Antariksh Station, and a crewed lunar mission by 2040, Ax-4 serves as a critical stepping stone. Shukla, as mission pilot, plays a key role — gathering insights that will directly inform India’s future missions. Led by veteran NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, the four-member crew will spend 14 days aboard the ISS, conducting nearly 60 scientific experiments. So how significant is this moment in India’s broader space ambitions? What can we learn from Ax-4 to shape the path ahead for Gaganyaan? And what exactly is Shubhanshu Shukla’s role in this pioneering mission?

 

Anchor:- Namrata Singh

Producer:- Sagheer Ahmad

Guest Coordinator:- Deepti Vashisht, Vinod Kumar Singh, Paras Kandpal

  1. Dr. Amitabha Ghosh, Mars Scientist, NASA
  2. Dr. G. Raju, Former Project Director, Megha-Tropiques, ISRO

 

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