India looks full of ambition, fearless, confident and full of pride from space, astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla said on Sunday. “Even today, Bharat looks ‘saare jahan se accha‘ from above,” Shukla said reprising the iconic words of India’s first astronaut Rakesh Sharma in 1984.
Calling his journey “incredible” and almost “magical”, Shukla said he is taking with him a lot of memories and learning that he will share with his countrymen.
Shukla was speaking at a farewell ceremony for Axiom-4 mission astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) who are set to begin their return journey to Earth on Monday. His stay at the ISS began on June 26.
The Axiom-4 mission undocks from the ISS on Monday and is expected to splash down off the California coast on Tuesday.
Time for feasts for Shukla, Axiom-4 astronauts
After 18 days of intense science experiments at the ISS, it is time for farewells and feasts for Shubhanshu Shukla and three other astronauts of the Axiom-4 mission who are set to begin their return journey to Earth on Monday, news agency PTI reported.
The Axiom 4 (Ax-4) crew—Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu “Shux” Shukla, and Mission Specialists Slawosz “Suave” Uznanski-Wisniewski and Tibor Kapu—are nearing the completion of their research and preparing to undock no earlier than at 7:05 am ET (4:35 pm IST) on Monday.
“Arrival back to earth…. splash down scheduled for 15th July at 3:00 PM IST,” Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said in a post on X.
A formal farewell for the Axiom-4 crew is scheduled for Sunday evening, India time.
Menu from six countries
As the Axiom-4 mission drew to a close, astronauts on board the ISS gathered for a feast with a diverse menu from the six nations they represent.
Currently, there are 11 astronauts on the ISS, seven of Expedition 73 and four of the Axiom-4 commercial mission.
“One of the most unforgettable evenings I’ve experienced on this mission was sharing a meal with new friends, Ax-4, aboard the International @Space_Station,” US astronaut Jonny Kim said in a post on X last week.
“We swapped stories and marvelled at how people from diverse backgrounds and nations came together to represent humanity in space,” he said.
For appetisers, the astronauts made rehydrated shrimp cocktails and crackers and the main course featured savoury chicken and beef fajitas. The cosmonauts capped the night with a delicious cake made from sweet bread, condensed milk, and walnuts, Kim said.
Shukla had got aam ras and carrot halwa for the feast, while Polish astronaut Slawosz had brought his native dish, pierogi with cabbage and mushrooms, to the ISS.