Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the 39-year-old Indian Air Force pilot-turned-astronaut, delivered his first personal message from orbit today, just hours after lifting off aboard the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS).Strapped into the Dragon capsule, Shukla greeted the nation with a heartfelt, “Namaskar, mere deshvasiyon.”“What a ride!” he exclaimed, describing the ascent aboard the Falcon 9 rocket: “When the ride started, you get pushed back into your seat… then suddenly, nothing. You’re floating in a vacuum.”“I am learning like a baby, how to walk and eat in space,” he added, speaking of the challenges of adapting to microgravity.This mission carries historic significance, not only for the individual, but for the nation. Shukla is only the second Indian citizen to travel to space, and the first to reach the ISS, following a 41-year gap since Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma’s historic flight in 1984.
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