Shubhanshu Shukla Returns from ISS, Ignites Momentum for India’s Gaganyaan Ambitions

New Delhi : Group Captain #ShubhanshuShukla, India's second astronaut in space and the first to visit the International Space Station (ISS), safely returned to Earth early Tuesday, concluding an 18-day historic mission that paves the way for India's ambitious Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme.

The 45-year-old Indian Air Force pilot, hailing from Lucknow, made his return alongside three international astronauts of the Axiom-4 private mission. Their Dragon spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off San Diego at 2:31 am Pacific Time (3:01 pm IST), met with jubilant reactions back in India.

With this mission, Shukla has become the first Indian to live and work aboard the ISS, spending a total of 20 days in Earth’s orbit—an unparalleled feat in India’s space history since Rakesh Sharma’s 1984 mission with the Soviet Union.

Historic Milestone for India : Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a post on X, hailed the achievement:
"Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s return marks a proud moment for India. As our first astronaut aboard the ISS, he has inspired a billion dreams and taken us closer to realizing Gaganyaan."

Shukla’s mission is being closely tied to ISRO's own human spaceflight efforts. The Indian space agency had invested ₹550 crore in the Axiom-4 collaboration, gathering critical data and experience to fine-tune the systems for its 2027 Gaganyaan launch.

Scientific Breakthroughs and Experiments

While aboard the ISS, Shukla successfully conducted seven microgravity experiments for ISRO. These included research on:

Indian strains of Tardigrades (extreme survival organisms)

Myogenesis (muscle cell formation in zero gravity)

Sprouting of methi and moong seeds

Growth of cyanobacteria and microalgae

Response of crop seeds in space conditions

ISRO’s Voyager Display system

These experiments are expected to have implications in long-duration space travel, space farming, and human health in extraterrestrial environments.

Back in Lucknow, Shukla’s parents—Shambhu Dayal Shukla and Asha Devi—watched the splashdown with tearful joy. "He has been to space and back, and this is a milestone not just for our family but for India," said his father. His sister, Suchi Misra, greeted the news with folded hands and moist eyes.

Next Steps : After recovery aboard SpaceX’s ship Shannon, the astronauts were flown back to land. They will now undergo a week-long rehabilitation to adjust from microgravity to Earth's gravitational pull.

India’s space journey is now firmly on a new trajectory. With Shukla’s successful return, the nation inches closer to its dream of launching astronauts aboard its own spacecraft. The countdown to Gaganyaan 2027 has well and truly begun.