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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T20 WC star Samson named ICC Men's Player of the Month for March
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Dubai (PTI): India opener Sanju Samson was on Tuesday named ICC Men's Player of the Month for March, capping a stellar run that saw him play a defining role in the team's triumphant T20 World Cup campaign.
Samson did not get to play in the early part of the tournament but was the standout performer in the big games towards the end and helped India retain the title.
His latest honour also extends a unique streak, with players from different countries winning the award over the past five months including South Africa's Simon Harmer, Australia's Mitchell Starc, New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell and Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan.
"Winning the ICC Player of the Month award is an incredible feeling, especially as it comes during what has been the most unforgettable phase of my cricketing journey. Playing a part in India's triumph at the Men's T20 World Cup was truly a dream realised, and it took some time for the magnitude of that moment to fully sink in," Samson said.
"This is an exciting era for Indian cricket, with immense talent across the board. I feel grateful for the opportunities I've received, and for the trust and support from my team-mates and coaching staff that have allowed me to perform at my best."
Not a regular part of the playing XI in the initial stages of the tournament, Samson was eventually called up for India's must-win Super 8 fixtures. After starting off with 24 against Zimbabwe, he picked form and didn't look back.
The opener missed out on a century against the West Indies by just three runs, but his attacking 97 not out set up India's spot in the semifinal.
A blistering 89 against England at the Wankhede helped India to 253 for 7, and the target proved elusive for the English who missed out by seven runs on March 5.
An equally amazing 89 was churned out during India's successful title defence in Ahmedabad, securing a 96-run win.
In the three crucial T20Is he was a part of in March, Samson notched up 275 runs at an astonishing average of 137.50 and a stunning strike rate of 199.27.
This is the first time that Samson has secured an ICC Men's Player of the Month honour.
New Zealand captain Melie Kerr won the women's honour for the third time, after an outstanding series against Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Taking over the white-ball teams from Sophie Devine, Kerr's captaincy seemed to have brought out the best in her with both the ball and the bat. In the Zimbabwe ODI series, she managed to snap 16 wickets in just three matches, including her career-best figures of 7/34.
Additionally, she also contributed with the bat, being the third highest run-scorer in the ODIs, scoring 140 runs across three games with an average of 46.67 in the counting month.
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