BENGALURU: Several days after India’s Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla entered the International Space Station (ISS), Isro, stating that “space is a domain best explored together,” said its participation in the Axiom-04 mission echoes that spirit. Axiom-4 follows in the legacy of international cooperation that sent Rakesh Sharma to space in 1984 aboard the Soviet Soyuz, Isro said, and added: “…This is one small step in orbit, but a giant leap in India’s pursuit of human spaceflight and scientific discovery.” The space agency said: “…The professionalism, dedication, and scientific excellence demonstrated by all partner agencies in the lead-up to the Axiom-4 mission have been truly inspiring. Isro is deeply appreciative of the partnership and camaraderie shown by our counterparts around the world.”Reiterating that the mission was conceptualised during PM Narendra Modi’s visit to the US in 2023, Isro said the PM’s leadership continues to shape India’s future in space as one that is collaborative, confident, and committed to peaceful exploration.Ax-4 is expected to provide useful operational inputs for Isro’s Gaganyaan programme, particularly in areas such as astronaut health telemetry, crew-ground coordination, multi-agency integration, and experiment execution in space conditions.“These insights will directly influence mission planning, safety validation, and astronaut readiness for India’s first indigenous human spaceflight mission,” Isro said.Onboard the ISS, a set of Indian scientific experiments is being conducted as part of the Ax-04 mission. These cover life sciences, fluid dynamics, health monitoring, and Earth observation. “Redwire Space, US, is coordinating the payload integration activities. Redwire facilitated key steps, including technical validation and compliance with ISS payload requirements. Each experiment is packaged into flight-ready payload containers. Redwire is also supporting the development of hardware handling protocols, ensuring that the Indian experiments could be safely deployed and operated onboard ISS, thereby enabling meaningful scientific outcomes for India’s research community,” Isro said.Pointing out how the launch was rescheduled multiple times due to issues such as a harness problem in Dragon, weather in the ascent corridor, leakage in the Falcon-9 booster stage, and leakage in the Zvezda Module of the ISS, the space agency said: “The Isro delegation played a constructive role in resolving all the issues. It made its stand clear that all problems should be resolved before clearing the launch for lift-off, considering the mission risks and safety of the crew.”The Indian astronauts —Shukla and his backup Group Captain Prashanth B Nair — have trained in spacecraft systems, microgravity operations, emergency protocols, space medicine, and experiment handling. As part of the programme, he also participated in Nasa’s National Outdoor Leadership Programme (NOLPS) in the Mexican wilderness, designed to build team resilience and psychological readiness.
