Washington, June 25 (H.S.): Indian Air Force Group Captain and astronaut Shubhashu Shukla is set to make history. The Axiom Mission-4, which will take four astronauts aboard SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, is scheduled to launch today at 2:31 AM EDT (12:01 PM IST) from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It will be launched into orbit by a Falcon 9 rocket. The historic private spaceflight Axiom Mission-4 is set to launch today from the Kennedy Space Center for the International Space Station (ISS).

Axiom Space has prepared this mission in collaboration with NASA and SpaceX. It includes international crew members from several countries. This is a significant step in commercial and global space exploration. Notably, Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla will also embark on this mission. This will be the first flight to the ISS for any Indian astronaut, and the entire country is watching closely.

According to SpaceX's live broadcast, this mission, launching at 2:31 AM, will carry four astronauts aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft. It will be launched into orbit by the Falcon 9 rocket. Docking with the ISS is expected to occur on June 26 at around 7:00 AM.

SpaceX confirms all systems are ready for launch with 90 percent favorable weather. ISRO's Shubhashu Shukla will pilot alongside NASA's Peggy Whitson, ESA's Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and Hungarian engineer Tibor Kapu, marking a significant return to human spaceflight for these nations

It is important to note that Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhashu Shukla will be the second Indian to go to space. Previously, Astronaut Rakesh Sharma traveled to space in 1984.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar