India is reaching new heights—literally! IAF Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is set to become the first Indian astronaut on the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the Axiom Space Mission-4 (Ax-4). His mission? To grow Indian superfoods like fenugreek (methi) and green gram (moong) in space!
Why Methi and Moong?
Packed with nutritional and medicinal benefits
Chosen to test plant growth in microgravity
Will help in advancing space agriculture for future space colonies
The seeds will be sprouted in microgravity, and once back on Earth, will undergo genetic and microbial analysis—a breakthrough for growing food in space!
About the Axiom-4 Mission:
Launch date: June 8, 2025
Crew:-
Shubhanshu Shukla (India)
Peggy Whitson (USA) – Former NASA astronaut
Slawosz Uznanski (Poland)
Tibor Kapu (Hungary)
Launch vehicle: SpaceX Crew Dragon on Falcon 9 rocket
Launch site: NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
Mission cost: ₹550 crore
Yoga, Algae, and Life in Orbit
In addition to agriculture:
Shukla will perform yoga and physical training to assess body movements in space.
The team will also study edible microalgae, a future superfood for astronauts, to understand its behavior in radiation and microgravity.
A Global Scientific Collaboration
This mission is a partnership among:
ISRO
NASA
Axiom Space
India’s Department of Biotechnology
