Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station (ISS), is preparing to return to Earth after completing an 18-day scientific mission as part of the Axiom-4 (AX-4) private spaceflight.
Shukla, along with American veteran astronaut Peggy Whitson, Polish ESA astronaut Slawomir Uznanski-Wisniewski, and Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu, will undock from the ISS at 4:30 PM IST on Monday aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. The crew is scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near California around 3:00 PM IST on Tuesday, July 15.
The mission was organised by Axiom Space in partnership with NASA and SpaceX, marking the fourth private mission to the ISS. During his time in orbit, Shukla conducted over 60 microgravity experiments, supported STEM outreach, and brought back more than 580 pounds of scientific samples and equipment.
In his farewell message from the ISS, Shukla expressed deep gratitude to ISRO, Axiom, NASA, and SpaceX, while reflecting proudly on India&rsquo;s progress. He praised Indian youth, students, and researchers for their contributions, and emotionally said, &ldquo;Today&rsquo;s India looks ambitious, brave, confident, and full of pride&mdash;today&rsquo;s India still looks better than the whole world.&rdquo;
Shukla&rsquo;s mission is being hailed as a historic moment for India&rsquo;s space program, showcasing the country&rsquo;s growing role in international space exploration.
[Except for the headline, this article has not been edited by the Benefit News editorial team and is published directly from the IANS news feed.]

Shubhanshu Shukla Returns After Historic ISS Mission

India's first ISS astronaut, Shubhanshu Shukla, wraps up a groundbreaking 18-day mission in space

Shubhanshu Shukla Returns After Historic ISS Mission

India's first ISS astronaut, Shubhanshu Shukla, wraps up a groundbreaking 18-day mission in space

July 14, 2025 | 14:41 IST