New Delhi: Shubhanshu Shukla, who recently made history as the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station (ISS) under the Axiom-4 mission, held a telephonic conversation with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman Dr. V. Narayanan. The discussion covered key aspects of the mission, including the ongoing scientific experiments aboard the ISS and Shukla’s health status.
Shukla, who traveled aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, is currently engaged in research activities at the ISS. During the interaction, Dr. Narayanan emphasised the importance of the experiments being conducted in orbit and their relevance to future space programmes. Senior ISRO officials also participated in the call and were briefed by Shukla on the challenges, research progress, and overall mission experience.
According to ISRO, Shukla maintained regular contact with the Chairman prior to the launch, receiving guidance and instructions critical to mission preparedness.
Insights gained from the Axiom-4 mission are expected to play a significant role in India’s forthcoming Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme. Designed to launch a crew into low-Earth orbit, Gaganyaan will benefit from the technical and operational lessons drawn from this international collaboration.