Dragon splashdown ends Shukla’s 18-day ISS journey, India’s space dream soars
Group Captain Shukla, a 39-year-old Indian Air Force officer & test pilot, completed his maiden space voyage supported by ISRO & NASA
New Delhi, July 15: As the Dragon spacecraft carrying astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla returned to Earth after an 18-day stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS), it carried with it more than just scientific data and seed samples - it brought home a story of grit, dreams, and India's growing space ambitions.
The spacecraft carrying Shukla, commander Peggy Whitson, and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary, splash down off San Diego coast in southern California on Tuesday, capping a 22.5-hour journey from the International Space Station.
“Splashdown of Dragon confirmed - welcome back to Earth, @AstroPeggy, Shux, @astro_slawosz, and Tibi,” SpaceX said in a post on social media.
Speed boats of SpaceX, the transporter for the mission, were seen moving towards the spacecraft to bring it to recovery ship Shannon where the astronauts will be brought out from the capsule.
The Axiom-4 crew will undergo a series of medical checks on board the ship before boarding a helicopter for a ride back to the shore.
The four astronauts are expected to spend seven days in rehabilitation as they adjust back to life on Earth under the influence of gravity, unlike the weightlessness experienced in orbit
Group Captain Shukla, a 39-year-old Indian Air Force officer and test pilot, completed his maiden space voyage as part of the Axiom-4 mission, a commercial spaceflight supported by ISRO and NASA, and operated by Axiom Space.
The journey marked a milestone for India - Shukla is the first Indian to step aboard the ISS and only the second Indian to go into space, following Rakesh Sharma's iconic flight in 1984.
Born on October 10, 1985—just a year after Sharma's spaceflight—Shukla grew up in Lucknow in a middle-class family with no direct links to aviation or space. But a childhood visit to an airshow lit a spark.
“As a child, he had once been to an air show and was fascinated by the speed and sound of the aircraft. That's when he first spoke about flying,” his elder sister Suchi Shukla said.
Last year, he was chosen as one of four astronauts in India's Gaganyaan programme, alongside Prasanth Balkrishnan Nair, Angad Pratap, and Ajit Krishnan.
The quartet underwent intensive training in Russia's Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre and ISRO's Astronaut Training Facility in Bengaluru. But before Gaganyaan's scheduled launch in 2027, Shukla got the opportunity to fly as part of the Ax-4 crew—an Indian was part of a human spaceflight mission after 41 years.
On board the ISS, Shukla was the pilot on the Axiom-4 mission, alongside commander Peggy Whitson and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary. Together, they not only conducted science experiments but also engaged in outreach to students and space communities across the globe.
Shukla conducted seven India-led microgravity experiments across diverse domains of life sciences, agriculture, space biotechnology, and cognitive research.
A highlight was the plant germination experiment led by scientists Ravikumar Hosamani (University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad) and Sudheer Siddapureddy (IIT Dharwad). Shukla planted moong and methi seeds in petri dishes and captured their sprouting progress, inserting them into cold storage for later analysis back on Earth.
The goal is to study how microgravity influences plant growth, microbial interactions, and genetic expression, which are key insights for long-term space farming.
In another project, he worked with cyanobacteria and microalgae, which are organisms being explored for their ability to produce food, oxygen, and biofuels in space. These tiny life forms may hold the key to sustainable life-support systems during deep space missions.
He also participated in stem cell research, exploring whether supplements can aid in injury repair and tissue regeneration in space.
“It's been great to work in the Glove Box doing this research. I feel proud to be a bridge between scientists on Earth and the station,” Shukla said.
One of his lighter experiments was a zero-gravity demonstration involving water.
Shukla created a floating water bubble and joked, “I've become a water bender here on the station,” as his commander used a plastic bag to show how surface tension manipulates light in space like a lens.
Shukla's mission will end with Dragon 'Grace' spacecraft's splash down near the California coast on Tuesday but his story will continue.
With Gaganyaan on the horizon and new avenues in space research opening up, his experience is expected to be instrumental in shaping India's human spaceflight programme.
In Shukla's own words from the station, “I want each one of you to be part of this journey. Let us embark on India's human space programme together.”
- PTI