Back from the stars: Shubhanshu Shukla to land in India after ISS mission

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to visit the International Space Station, is back and set to meet PM Modi in Delhi before heading to Lucknow, and will be back in the capital for National Space Day on August 23.

New Delhi: Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the second Indian to travel to space and the first to visit the International Space Station (ISS), is expected to arrive in India this weekend, Union minister Jitendra Singh said on Thursday.

Singh said Shukla is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his short stay in Delhi before he leaves for his hometown, Lucknow, to meet his family.

He will return to Delhi for National Space Day celebrations on August 23, the minister said.

Shukla was part of the Axiom-4 private space mission that lifted off from Florida on June 25 and docked at the ISS on June 26. Along with three other astronauts, Peggy Whitson (US), Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland) and Tibor Kapu (Hungary), Shukla conducted over 60 experiments and 20 outreach sessions during the 18-day mission.

The Dragon spacecraft carrying the Axiom-4 crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the San Diego coast on July 15, marking the successful completion of the mission.

The mission is considered a significant milestone for India's own human spaceflight programme Gaganyaan which is targeting a launch by 2027.

The mission was hailed by PM Modi who said Shukla has inspired a billion dreams and has taken a significant step in taking forward India's space ambitions.