India returns to space after 41 yrs, Shubhanshu Shukla lifts off on Axiom-4

Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla made history on Wednesday when Axiom Mission 4 to the International Space Station (ISS) lifted off a little after noon from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

The mission is the first time since Rakesh Sharma’s journey aboard Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft in 1984 that the Indian government is sponsoring a human spaceflight mission, a precursor to its ambitious Gaganyaan mission. The Indian Space Research Organisation is reportedly spending Rs 550 crore on Gaganyaan. Shukla will become the first Indian to reach the ISS on Thursday, after an approximately 28-hour journey.

Launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, the Crew Dragon C213 capsule carried Shukla into low Earth orbit. He is one of the four astronauts who are shortlisted for India's maiden human spaceflight mission, Gaganyaan, currently slated for late 2026 or early 2027. His role on Ax-4 is to pilot the Dragon spacecraft — and to bring home crucial operational experience for the Gaganyaan programme.

It was on February 27 last year that Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the names of the four astronauts who would carry India’s spaceflight ambitions: Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, Ajit Krishnan, Angad Prathap, and Shukla.

"This mission marks a big step for India, not just in human spaceflight, but also for our growing private space industry. At Bellatrix Aerospace, we share this spirit of pushing and redefining boundaries. We believe missions like this will inspire the next generation of innovators and help build a strong, self-reliant space ecosystem." — Yashas Karanam, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Bellatrix Aerospace.

The 14-day mission also includes crew members from the US, Poland, and Hungary, and will include around 60 intense research experiments representing 31 countries.

According to media reports, research is also being contributed by ESA (Europe), NASA, and Hungary’s HUNOR programme. Polish experiments will investigate neurofeedback, gut microbiome changes, and wearable health tech, while Hungary will explore cognition, motor skills, and even fruit fly resilience, reports said.

From $8.4 billion in 2024, India’s space economy is projected to soar to $44 billion by 2033, according to a March FICCI-EY report. If the trajectory holds, India’s share of the global space market will quadruple: from 2 per cent to 8 per cent. But the sector will need a net investment of $22 billion to reach that target.

A constellation of startups is already orbiting the dream. From Dhruva Space and Bellatrix Aerospace to Skyroot, Manastu, and Agnikul Cosmos — each firm is carving out a niche, whether in propulsion systems, launch vehicles, or satellite design. Even legacy mapping companies like MapmyIndia are getting in on the action, providing geospatial solutions and navigation tech.