Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla returns home, receives grand welcome at Delhi Airport, likely to meet PM Modi on…
New Delhi: After a historic visit to the International Space Station (ISS) and successfully conducting tasks in zero gravity, astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla returned to India on Sunday. He received a grand welcome at the airport. Amid Dhol and ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ chanting, he was welcomed by Union Minister Jitendra Singh, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, and ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan. Shukla has been training for the Axiom-4 mission in the United States for the past one year. Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, who is Shukla’s backup astronaut, also returned home.
Shubhanshu Shukla To Meet PM Modi
Shubhanshu Shukla is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi this week and then he will travel to his hometown, Lucknow. Then he is expected to attend National Space Day celebrations in New Delhi on August 22–23.
Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh shared a heartfelt post on X, saying, “India’s space glory touches Indian soil… as the iconic son of Mother India, #Gaganyatri Shubhanshu Shukla, lands in Delhi in the early hours of this morning. Accompanying him, another equally accomplished Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, one of the astronauts selected for India’s first human mission Gaganyaan, who was India’s designated backup for the mission to the International Space Station #ISS.”
On Saturday, Shukla shared a picture of himself on Instagram, stating that he has mixed emotions about leaving the US and returning to his motherland.
“As I sit on the plane to come back to India, I have a mix of emotions running through my heart. I feel sad leaving a fantastic group of people behind who were my friends and family for the past year during this mission. I am also excited about meeting all my friends, family, and everyone in the country for the first time post-mission. I guess this is what life is – everything all at once,” Shukla posted.
“Having received incredible love and support from everyone during and after the mission, I can’t wait to come back to India to share my experiences with all of you. Goodbyes are hard, but we need to keep moving in life. As my commander Peggy Whitson fondly says, ‘The only constant in spaceflight is change.’ I believe that applies to life as well,” he added.
India’s Own Space Station: PM Modi
Addressing the nation on 79th Independence Day from the ramparts of the historic Red Fort, PM Modi stated that the country is developing its own space station. He also informed us that Shukla has returned from the ISS.
“Our Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla has returned from the space station. In the coming days, he is returning to India,” PM Modi.
Axiom-4 Private Space Mission
It is worth noting that Shuka was a part of the Axiom-4 private space mission, which launched from Florida on June 25 and arrived at the International Space Station on June 26. He returned to our Blue Planet on July 15. During the 18-day mission, astronaut Shukla was accompanied by three other astronauts – Peggy Whitson from the US, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, and Tibor Kapu from Hungary. The team conducted over 60 experiments and held 20 outreach sessions.
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