Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to script history with travel to ISS
New Delhi (PTI): Set to script history, Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla and three others boarded the Dragon spacecraft at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida for their sojourn to the International Space Station as part of a commercial mission by Axiom Space on Wednesday.
The much-delayed launch of the Axiom-4 mission is set for 12:01 pm IST and SpaceX has announced that the weather for 90 per cent favourable for lift-off.
The Lucknow-born Shukla, former NASA astronaut Mission Commander Peggy Whitson, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland, and Tibor Kapu of Hungary are part of the Axiom-4 mission that marks the return to space for the three nations.
Shukla will be the first astronaut to travel to the International Space Station, a journey that comes 41 years after Rakesh Sharma’s eight days in orbit as part of the then Soviet Union's Salyut-7 space station in 1984.
The four astronauts boarded the new Dragon spacecraft, which will be on its maiden voyage, placed on top of the Falcon-9 spacecraft of SpaceX, the transport provider for the mission.
Earlier, the four astronauts emerged from a month-long quarantine to meet their family members and friends from a distance before moving to board the spacecraft.
"Dragon's hatch is closed, all communication and suit checks are complete, the seats are rotated, and the Ax-4 crew is ready for launch," SpaceX announced in a post on X.
During the leak checks on the Dragon spacecraft, astronaut Whitson found a fibre during the hatch closing which was cleaned up. The second leak check was also carried out and the side hatch was closed securely.
Multiple watch parties have been organised at schools across India, including in Jamshedpur and Shukla's City Montessori School in Lucknow to cheer the astronauts' journey to space.
The Axiom-4 mission was originally planned for lift-off on May 29 and had to be postponed to June 8 as the Dragon spacecraft was not fully ready. The mission had to be postponed due to high winds in the ascent path of the rocket.
The launch could not be achieved on June 10 and June 11, when SpaceX, the providers of the launch rocket and the space capsule, detected a liquid oxygen leak in the Falcon-9 rocket and due to certain issues in the ageing Russian module of the ISS.
The mission will lift off from Launch Complex 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew will travel to the orbiting laboratory on a new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft after launching on the company's Falcon 9 rocket.
The targeted docking time is approximately 4.30 pm IST on Thursday, June 26, NASA said in a statement.
The launch opportunity comes after NASA and Roscosmos officials discussed the status of the recent repair work in the transfer tunnel at the aft (back) most segment of the orbital laboratory's Zvezda service module, NASA said.
"NASA and Roscosmos have a long history of cooperation and collaboration on the International Space Station. This professional working relationship has allowed the agencies to arrive at a shared technical approach and now Axiom Mission 4 launch and docking will proceed," said acting NASA Administrator Janet Petro.
As part of a collaboration between NASA and ISRO, Axiom Mission 4 delivers on a commitment highlighted by President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to send the first ISRO astronaut to the station, the NASA statement said.
The space agencies are participating in five joint science investigations and two in-orbit STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) demonstrations.
Once docked, the private astronauts plan to spend about two weeks aboard the orbiting laboratory, conducting a mission comprising science, outreach, and commercial activities.
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Chhattisgarh Vedanta power plant blast: Death toll rises to 20; sixteen workers undergoing treatment
Sakti (Chhattisgarh) (PTI): The death toll in a blast at the Vedanta power plant in Chhattisgarh's Sakti district has mounted to 20 with seven more workers succumbing to injuries, while 16 others are undergoing treatment at different hospitals, officials said on Wednesday.
The deceased include six labourers from West Bengal, five from Chhattisgarh, three each from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, two from Bihar, and one from Madhya Pradesh.
The opposition Congress has demanded registration of an FIR against the plant management and a judicial inquiry into the incident.
The explosion occurred on Tuesday afternoon in a steel tube carrying high-pressure steam from the boiler to the turbine at the Vedanta Ltd power plant located in Singhitarai village, leaving several workers with severe burn injuries.
According to officials, four workers died on the spot, while nine others succumbed to injuries soon after the incident.
Seven more workers have died in hospitals, raising the toll to 20, Sakti Collector Amrit Vikas Topno told PTI on Wednesday.
He said that a total of 36 workers were affected in the blast, and 20 of them died.
"Of the 16 injured workers, five are undergoing treatment in hospitals in Raipur, while 11 others are in hospitals of Raigarh, the neighbouring district of Sakti," he added.
Topno added that every possible effort was being made to provide the best medical treatment to the injured.
The deceased were identified, and their family members are being contacted. Arrangements have been made to transport the mortal remains to their native villages via ambulance following the postmortem examination and to provide immediate financial assistance, he said.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the families of each deceased worker and Rs 50,000 for those injured.
Vedanta Power has also announced a Rs 35 lakh compensation for the family of each deceased worker, along with employment support.
The company will also provide Rs 15 lakh to each injured person, ensure salary continuation until recovery, and offer counselling support, a statement from the plant management said.
The chief minister has ordered an inquiry by the Commissioner of the Bilaspur division, assuring strict action against the guilty.
He directed officials to ensure free and proper medical treatment for all injured and emphasised that no negligence in their care would be tolerated.
The district administration has also ordered a separate magisterial probe, while the company has initiated its own internal investigation.
Collector Topno has appointed the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Dabhra to conduct the magisterial inquiry.
The SDM has been asked to submit a report within 30 days covering key aspects, including the cause of the accident, whether it was due to technical or human error, and details of safety inspections carried out at the plant.
Meanwhile, the opposition Congress has demanded registration of an FIR against the plant management and a judicial inquiry into the incident.
State Congress communication wing head Sushil Anand Shukla on Wednesday alleged negligence on the plant management's part and accused the government of attempting to shield those responsible.
He also demanded compensation of Rs 1 crore for the families of the deceased and Rs 50 lakh for the injured.
The construction of a 1,200 MW coal-based thermal power project (two units of 600 MW each) in Singhitarai, originally owned by Athena Chhattisgarh Power Ltd, started in 2009, but remained stalled between 2016 and 2022.
Vedanta acquired the plant in 2022, after which a 600 MW unit was completed and commissioned in August last year, while the second unit is still under construction.
The deceased have been identified as Amrit Lal Patel, Thanda Ram Lahre, Udhab Singh Yadav, Rameshwar Mahilange, and Nadeem Ansari (all from Chhattisgarh); Susanta Jana, Sheikh Saifuddin, Manas Giri, Kailash Mahto, Shibnath Murmu, and Dipankar Singh (West Bengal), Tarun Kumar Ojha, Abdul Karim and Ashok Parhiya (Jharkhand), Raju Ram, Pappu Kumar and Brijesh Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), Aakib Khan and Ritesh Kumar (Bihar), and Chitranjan Dhulai of Madhya Pradesh, officials said.
