For India, Axiom-4 is a small step; Gaganyaan is the goal

With the American Axiom-4 mission having docked to the International Space Station, more than 280 individuals (as astronauts or private visitors, and even film crew), from 26 countries have visited the International Space Station. India's Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla is one among them and he is the first Indian aboard the International Space Station. However, among these 26 nations that have sent their nationals to the International Space Station, only two have the holistic capability (Rocket, spacecraft, related infrastructure) to independently launch and return crew- Russia and USA.

Meanwhile, China operates its own Tiangong Space Station and has the same capability. Since the year 2018, India has been working on its independent Human Spaceflight programme named Gaganyaan. At the initial level, Gaganyaan would involve launching Indian astronauts on an Indian rocket and capsule, to circle the earth, perform basic experiments within the capsule, and return safely for a splashdown landing.

In his 2018 Independence Day speech, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Gaganyaan would be accomplished in 2022, marking the 75thyear of Indian independence. As of today, the technologically challenging Gaganyaan programme remains in its development and testing phase, and is years away from materializing. When Gaganyaan becomes a reality, India will become the fourth nation after Russia, US, China, to independently launch humans to space, a feat that instills national pride like no other. For the long-term, the Indian Government has also announced a space vision that includes building an Indian space station, and an Indian astronaut setting foot on the moon.

Why Axiom-4 is a stepping stone to Gaganyaan, a paid mission

The first and only Indian (until Shubhanshu Shukla) to undertake spaceflight is Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, who flew on the Soviet Interkosmos mission to the Salyut-7 Soviet Space station, back in the year 1984. Over the last four decades, technology, computing, automation, sensors and software have undergone a complete modernisation and have changed the experience of spaceflight. Further, human spaceflight is all about highly sophisticated human-machine interfaces, something that is outside of ISRO's core expertise. ISRO has vast experience in launching rockets and satellites, but has not undertaken missions involving humans.

According to top ISRO officials, the Indian Space agency has only Sharma's Soviet-era experience to rely upon when it comes to crucial guidance and inputs from an Indian astronaut, while designing and developing Gaganyaan. Given that Indian teams working on Gaganyaan require an understanding of contemporary spaceflight and related technologies, the Axiom-4 mission serves as a stepping stone to Gaganyaan.

As part of Axiom-4, Shukla gets to travel aboard the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, nestled in the ultra-modern Crew Dragon capsule, he also gets to live and work aboard the space station. His practical experience and know-how could help refine India's own efforts towards Gaganyaan. Which is why the Indian Government has paid Rs.550 crore (approx $64mn) for getting a seat for an Indian astronaut on Axiom-4, through a pact with NASA. However, it must be emphasized that the Axiom-4 mission is only a minor stepping stone towards the Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission. In the coming years,India needs to accomplish thousands of tests and technology developments before the homegrown Gaganyaan takes flight. This process leading to human spaceflight is one that is filled with trial and error.

Axiom-4 showcases the pinnacle of American human spaceflight technology, and is the result of painstaking efforts by the US space ecosystem. Likewise, in future, as India executes Gaganyaan, it is expected that a similar space ecosystem would emerge in India, thereby growing Indian industry, academia.

Axiom-4 and India's road to Atmanirbharta (self-reliance)

Group Captain Shukla is the second Indian to go to space, an Indian returns to space after 41 years, he is also the first Indian to go aboard the Space Station. However, it must be remembered that Shukla is flying on an American rocket, on an American capsule, from American soil. This is exactly like Rakesh Sharma's Soviet-era flight on a Soviet rocket and capsule. As such, there is no core Indian technology involved in this mission, except for the few science experiments being carried by Shukla.

Going by Shukla's own words spoken live from space, "My journey to Space station and my stay there is a small, solid, steady step towards the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme Gaganyaan".

For several decades, the Indian Navy has operated leased Russian-origin nuclear submarines, which helped in practically learning about the technology, its operation, strategic capabilities, and much more. But India's real gamechangers have been the homegrown nuclear submarines of the Arihant-class and its successors. Likewise, the Indian Navy has been operating foreign-origin aircraft carriers for several decades. However, the biggest milestone in Indian shipbuilding was the operationalization of the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, built in Kochi, Kerala.

The American Axiom-4 and India's homegrown Gaganyaan are to be seen like the Indian Navy's foreign-origin platforms that eventually offered a stepping stone for India to develop its own.