Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and his Axiom-4 mission team have safely returned to Earth after a successful 18-day journey aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off Southern California at approximately 3 PM IST, marking the triumphant end of a mission that has captivated India.
Recovered by the U.S. Navy, the capsule is now en route to land, where the astronauts—including Shukla, Peggy Whitson (USA), Slawosz Uznanski (Poland), and Tibor Kapu (Hungary)—will be transferred to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for a week-long medical observation. Shukla is expected to return to India after this recovery period.
The spacecraft undocked from the ISS at 4:45 PM IST the previous day. A brief communication delay caused a 10-minute pause, but the autonomous capsule then smoothly orbited Earth for 22 hours before re-entry.
Shukla, a native of Uttar Pradesh and officer in the Indian Air Force, has become only the second Indian to journey into space, following in the footsteps of Rakesh Sharma in 1984. His mission is seen as a major stepping stone for India’s ambitious space future, especially the Gaganyaan mission in 2027 and the proposed Indian Space Station.
The Indian government reportedly allocated ₹550 crore for Shukla’s participation, emphasizing its strategic importance. During the mission, Shukla and his team completed around 60 scientific experiments, including seven conducted for ISRO. These experiments explored areas such as seed germination in space, microgravity’s effects on bones and muscles, and microalgae behavior in zero gravity—all successfully executed aboard the ISS.
Shubhanshu Shukla’s space voyage is being hailed as a defining moment in India’s growing presence in global space exploration, symbolizing not just scientific achievement, but national pride and the dreams of a billion people.
