India celebrates the first ISS use: 1.4 billion hopes united

India celebrates the first ISS use: 1.4 billion hopes united

India celebrated another step on his way to space nation after Shubhanshu Shucla started on Wednesday as the first astronaut of the country to the International Space Station (ISS).

The start of the Axiom Space Mission 4

Shucla was on board the private Axiom Space Mission 4 (AX-4), which started at NASA Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This mission was organized by the Texas company in cooperation with Elon Musk's space company SpaceX.

The mission is expected to dock Eastern Time at the Harmony space module on Thursday at 7 a.m.

The crew member and the experiments

The experienced former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson as well as Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski from Poland and Tibor Kapu from Hungary also include. Shucla, the mission's pilot, and the other crew members are expected to spend about two weeks on board the ISS and carry out around 60 experiments before returning.

collaboration between NASA and ISRO

The mission is in cooperation between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Shukla "bears the wishes, hopes and efforts of 1.4 billion Indians" in a post on X.

"I wish him and the other astronauts every success!" He wrote.

a historical moment for India

Shucla is only the second Indian citizen who travels into space after Rakesh Sharma, who flew on board a Soviet rocket in 1984. Sharma also wished the AX-4 crew all the best. In a video address that was shared by the Press Trust of India, he said: "I wish you all the best. God is with the crew.

emotional reactions and inspiration for the youth

Shuclas parents were visibly emotional when they followed the livestream of the start in the north Indian city of Lucknow. "He is the first person, the first Indian in the ISS. It is really a great moment for us Indians," the student Isma Tarikh told Reuters. "It is an inspiration for me ... I also want to achieve something big and make a contribution to the world, like (Shuckla)."

Another student, Mohammad Hamughan, described it as a "proud moment for the Indians" and explained: "It inspires me to become space scientists. I always loved to read about sci-fi and all of this, but that is inspiring for us as a student."

The way to the Gaganyaan mission

Shuclas flight is considered the forerunner of its own Gaganyaan mission of India, the country's first manned space mission, which is due to start in 2027. Four Indian air force pilots selected for this mission have completed their basic training in Russia and are currently undergoing further training in India.

India's spatial drive ambitions

The space available in India have accelerated under Modi, which was elected in June for a third term in office and is trying to assert India's place on the global stage. In January, India only became the fourth country, which successfully managed to achieve unmanned docking in space. In 2023, India joined an elite space club and became the fourth country that landed a spacecraft on the moon. The historical Chandrayaan 3 mission, which was the first to complete a gentle landing near the unexplored south pole of the moon, has collected samples that help the scientists to understand how the moon has developed and has developed over time.

The country also has the goal of building its own space station by 2035, which Bharatiya Antariksha Station will be called, as well as starting its first orbital mission in Venus in 2028.

Reporting of CNNS Aishwarya S. Iyer.