Union Space Minister Jitendra Singh announced in the Lok Sabha that an ISRO astronaut, referred to as “Gaganyaatri,” will travel to the International Space Station (ISS) as part of an ISRO-NASA joint mission. Singh detailed that this mission is a collaboration between ISRO, NASA, and the private company Axiom Space. This agreement, formalized through a spaceflight partnership with Axiom Space, aims to facilitate the astronaut’s journey to the ISS.
One of the four Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots currently training for the Gaganyaan mission will be selected for the ISS mission. These pilots, chosen by ISRO’s Astronaut Selection Board, have completed basic spaceflight training in Russia and are undergoing advanced training at ISRO’s Astronaut Training Facility in Bengaluru. This preparation is part of the broader Gaganyaan mission aimed at sending Indian astronauts to space.
Minister Singh provided an update on the Gaganyaan mission’s progress, stating that two of the three semesters of the training program are completed, and various critical components of the human-rated launch vehicle are ready or nearing completion. These include the solid and liquid propulsion stages, the C32 cryogenic stage, and the structures of the crew and service modules. Flight integration activities are currently in progress to ensure the mission’s success.
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