Axiom 4 Mission: Shubhanshu Shukla's family celebrates his return to Earth

With waves and smiles, Shubhanshu Shukla returned to Earth on Tuesday after an 18-day stay on the International Space Station, a feat that holds the promise to herald India's own human spaceflight ambitions. Back in Lucknow, his hometown, Shukla's family members celebrated his achievement by bursting firecrackers and dancing to the dhol beats.

As astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla completed a successful splashdown in the Pacific Ocean aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon, his hometown of Lucknow, thousands of miles away, erupted in joyous chants and celebrations.

At City Montessori School’s Kanpur Road campus, Shukla’s alma mater, joy overflowed as students, teachers, dignitaries, and his family waved Indian flags and grew emotional watching the capsule land in the Pacific.

Shukla’s parents, Shambhu Dayal Shukla and Asha Devi, were seen wiping their tears overwhelmed with emotion at his safe landing.

"He has been to space and back and we are all over the moon because this mission has its own importance for the country's Gaganyaan programme," Shambhu Dayal Shukla said.

Moments before the capsule landed, an emotional parents waves the Indian flag celebrating their son's remarkable milestone.

Shubhanshu Shukla’s family in Lucknow celebrated the SpaceX spacecraft's landing with a cake-cutting celebration, honouring his historic achievement.

In the evening, family members danced to dhol beats, marking his successful homecoming from space.

Family members were seen joyfully dancing to dhol beats.

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.

Lucknow-born Group Captain Shukla became the second Indian in space after Rakesh Sharma and the first to visit the ISS, spending a record 20 days in orbit.