Shubhanshu Shukla returns safely, next mission: Helping Gaganyaan

With Grace’s gentle splash into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at 3.02 pm (IST) on Tuesday, Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla (Shux) ended his mission, wrapping up months of training, experiments in orbit, and India’s latest stride in human spaceflight participation.When Wing Commander (retd) Rakesh Sharma soared into space aboard a Soviet spacecraft in April 1984, Shux wasn’t even born. It would be another year and a half before he entered the world. Forty-one years later, Shux’s Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission comes at a time India is making a deeper entry into human spaceflight, expanding ambitions beyond satellites and rockets.And this hasn’t escaped Shux, who in his last speech from the International Space Station (ISS), had said: “As this journey completes… India’s human spaceflight journey is both long and challenging. But I assure you, if we decide, even the stars are attainable.”PM Modi, while welcoming Shux back, said as India’s first astronaut to the ISS, he has inspired a billion dreams through his dedication, courage and pioneering spirit. “...It marks another milestone towards our own Human Space Flight Mission - Gaganyaan,” the PM said.Re-entry & splashdownGrace, the Dragon capsule carrying Shux, mission commander Peggy Whitson, mission specialists Tibor Kapu and Slawosz Uznanski, had undocked from the ISS at 4.45 pm Monday. As part of the re-entry and splashdown operations, around 2.07 pm on Tuesday, Grace began the 18-minute de-orbit burn, and by 2.27 pm, Grace jettisoned the trunk (with solar panels and radiators), and the nose cone was closed by 2.33 pm.Around 2.57 pm, Grace deployed the drogue parachutes and about a minute later, the four main parachutes got deployed at an altitude of 1,000 metres. In a three-minute operation, these parachutes together reduced Grace’s velocity from 563kmph to 23kmph as altitude dropped to 800m, 600m and 400m, before the splashdown.Recovery operationsAt 3.07 pm, Peggy radioed to mission control that the crew was ready for recovery and by 3.10 pm, the recovery boats reached Grace. The recovery personnel, wearing PPE suits, first checked for hazardous gases around Grace before beginning rigging the capsule at 3.15 pm, as flight surgeons stood by for the initial medical tests to be conducted.Between 3.29 pm and 3.30 pm, Grace was nested on recovery ship “Shannon”, when the recovery teams began some routine leak checks and de-rigging and ensured it was safe for the crew to egress or exit from the side hatch.By 3.37 pm Grace was being moved from its initial place on Shannon to a deck where the crew was expected to be recovered. Between 3.40 pm and 3.41 pm, the recovery personnel opened the side hatch and began preparations to allow the crew to egress.At 3.49 pm, Peggy slid out of the capsule with a smile, followed by Shux at 5.52 pm and mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski and Tibor Kapu in the next couple of minutes. The crew was then taken to land by a helicopter. Following medical checks, they will be taken to Houston for de-briefing and other procedures.Learning For GaganyaanJust as Shux, Isro too has acknowledged the importance of the mission that has cost India Rs 548 crore. “...Ax-4 is one small step in orbit, but a giant leap in India’s pursuit of human spaceflight and scientific discovery,” the agency had said post-launch. Isro chairman V Narayanan, while stressing that learning outcomes — spanning astronaut training (for two), mission operations, and hardware-software-human interface — cannot be measured purely in monetary terms, had told TOI that benefits from Ax-4 far outweigh the cost.Indian Space Association director-general Lt Gen (retd) AK Bhatt said: “This is a stepping stone for India’s future crewed space journeys, including Gaganyaan and goals of landing an Indian on the Moon by 2040. It’ll not only support Isro but also give impetus to both global and Indian private space industries.”Satcom Industries Association-India president Subba Rao Pavuluri, echoing Bhatt’s views, said: “...While our ancestors explored Planets with intuition, we’ll be exploring planets with experimentation and going there. Shukla’s mission is the first step to realise ‘Bharat’s Space ambitions’ .”Also read | Minister Jitendra Singh: India has found a lasting space in world of space; hints at Shubhanshu Shukla's India return