Axiom-4 astronauts arrive at the International Space Station
June 26 (UPI) -- Axiom-4 astronauts on Thursday morning arrived on the International Space Station, including the first Indian to set foot on the space station.
The crew made its way from the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and opened the hatch to enter the ISS at about 8:14 a.m. EDT after docking at 6:13 a.m., NASA said.
Former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, European Space Agency astronaut Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu and Indian Research Organization astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla are set to spend two weeks on the space station conducting 60 scientific experiments "focused on human research, Earth observation and life, biological and material sciences," according to SpaceX.
Shulka is the first Indian astronaut to set foot on the ISS.
"What a ride!" he said, adding that it has been "an amazing feeling to be just floating in space" and that "it's been fun," Shukla said about his first 24 hours in space.
"I'm enjoying the view, the experience and learning anew, like a baby, how to walk, to control yourself, and to eat and read," he added.
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Shukla "carries with him the wishes, hopes and aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians" in a post on X. "Wish him and other astronauts all the success!"
After Rakesh Sharma's trip 41 years ago, Shukla is the second Indian to travel to space.
"Wishing you all the very best. To the crew, godspeed," he said in a video message posted online by the Press Trust of India.
"Spend as much time as possible looking out of the window," he added.
"He's the first person, the first Indian in the ISS. It is a great moment for us Indians," student Isma Tarikh told Reuters. "It is an inspiration for me... Even I want to become something great and be a world contributor just like (Shukla)."
"It inspires me to become a space scientist. I have always loved to read about sci-fi and all of the stuff, but this is inspiring for us as a students," another student, Mohammad Hamughan told Reuters.
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