<p>Two Indian astronauts from the existing pool of four astronaut designates (specially selected test pilots of the Indian Air Force) will be training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Texas, from early August, ISRO Chief,&nbsp;Dr. S. Somanath told WION.</p>

<p>He added that one of the two NASA-trained Indian astronauts would later fly on the upcoming Indo-US mission to the International Space Station.</p>

<p>The NASA training of Indian astronauts and the Indo-US mission to the International Space Station (ISS) was&nbsp;announced by US President Joe Biden, during Indian Prime Minister Modi's state visit to the US in June 2023.</p>

<p>The NASA training and the joint ISS mission are meant to serve as precursors to India's homegrown Human Spaceflight programme:&nbsp;Gaganyaan.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">“Collaboration on Human Spaceflight, including sending an <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Indian?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Indian</a> astronaut to the International <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/space?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#space</a> station in 2024” says <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> as he lists out areas of bilateral cooperation between <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/india?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#india</a> &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/USA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#USA</a><br />
<br />
Travel to <a href="https://twitter.com/Space_Station?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Space_Station</a> &amp; working there will prep astronauts for Gaganyaan <a href="https://t.co/mJfcX4sKdP">pic.twitter.com/mJfcX4sKdP</a></p>
— Sidharth.M.P (@sdhrthmp) <a href="https://twitter.com/sdhrthmp/status/1672074359031361537?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2023</a></blockquote>
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<p>Responding to a query from WION, US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti expressed confidence that the Indo-US crewed mission to the ISS would take place by 2024-end.</p>

<p>The question was raised based on recent reports that this&nbsp;mission would be pushed to early 2025. In&nbsp;fact, President Biden had specifically announced in June 2023 that the joint crewed mission would be executed in 2024.</p>

<p>Ambassador Garcetti was speaking at the&nbsp;US-India Defence Conclave organised by CUTS International.</p>

<p>Incidentally, this Indo-US astronaut mission comes forty years after India's first and only astronaut Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma flew on a Soyuz T-11 rocket to the Soviet Salyut-7 Space station in April 1984.</p>

<p><img alt="Indian Air Force's Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, flight engineer Gennady Strekalov and commander Yury Malyshev alongside screengrabs of the-then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's interaction with Rakesh Sharma" src="https://cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20-%202023-07-09T123411.047.png" /></p>

<p><em>Indian Air Force's Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma (centre), flight engineer Gennady Strekalov (L) and commander Yury Malyshev (R) alongside the screengrabs of the-then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's interaction with Rakesh Sharma |&nbsp;spacefacts.de/YouTube via Indian National Congress</em></p>

<p>Queried on the specifics of the Indo-US mission, Ambassador Garcetti told WION that it would be executed by American private firms SpaceX and Axiom.</p>

<p>SpaceX's Falcon9 rocket would be the launcher and the Crew Dragon would be the capsule, whereas Axiom will serve as a facilitator of this effort.</p>

<p>For the last four years, SpaceX has been the lone US option to ferry astronauts to the space station and back. Boeing Starliner is meant to be the other American offering in this lucrative segment but the ongoing technical issues with Starliner and its overstaying in space would further delay routine missions by Starliner.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>What is India's Gaganyaan?</strong>&nbsp;</h2>

<p>India has revealed the names of four astronaut candidates who are to fly on the country's homegrown 'Gaganyaan' programme that aims to fly an astronaut-carrying capsule to earth orbit (400kms above the planet's surface) and bring them back safely for an oceanic splashdown landing.</p>

<p>Gaganyaan would be carried out by the Indian Space Agency ISRO, with test pilots of the Indian Air Force, serving as the crew members.</p>

<p>The four candidates have already completed their training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, Moscow, and are presently undergoing training at ISRO and Indian Air Force facilities, while also assisting ISRO teams in designing and developing some systems required for Gaganyaan.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">India's best-kept secret of the last 5yrs - <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/indian?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#indian</a> astronaut candidates who have been training for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/isro?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#isro</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/gaganyaan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#gaganyaan</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/india?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#india</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/space?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#space</a> <a href="https://t.co/j9Uxd2qyXD">pic.twitter.com/j9Uxd2qyXD</a></p>
— Sidharth.M.P (@sdhrthmp) <a href="https://twitter.com/sdhrthmp/status/1762370086571327716?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<p>Gaganyaan is the first step in a series of sustained human spaceflight missions that India wants to carry out in a phased manner. By the end of this decade, India hopes to put an uncrewed space station in Earth orbit. By 2035, it would be used as a crewed Indian outpost that's circling the earth.</p>

<p>India also plans to land its astronauts on the moon by 2040.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Coming as&nbsp;a precursor to Gaganyaan, the Indo-US Astronaut mission would help India gain contemporary spaceflight experience, something that only Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma has from his Soviet-era spaceflight in 1984.</p>

<p>With spaceflight technologies having drastically changed, the contemporary spaceflight experience would offer valuable technological and experiential insights.&nbsp;</p>

<p>At present, India is in the process of gradually testing various systems and technologies required to execute an uncrewed Gaganyaan mission, slated for later this year or in early 2025. After a couple of flawless uncrewed missions, India will embark on the astronaut-carrying mission, perhaps, by 2026.&nbsp;</p>

<p>ISRO Chief Dr S.Somanath had earlier told WION that human spaceflight is a highly challenging endeavour and how India only had the minimal experience of Rakesh Sharma's flight in 1984.</p>

<p><strong>Also watch |&nbsp;</strong><strong>Indian astronauts to train at NASA from August</strong></p>

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<p>He added that the Indian astronauts have to "touch, feel, and experience space" and how the mission to Space station would help ISRO in its own Gaganyaan efforts.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In another significant collaborative effort, India's GSLV Mk2 rocket will be launching an Indo-US satellite known as NISAR - NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR).</p>

<p>NISAR is an all-weather earth observation satellite that will help study the vital signs of the earth, such as the temperature, ice melting, deforestation, and many more important parameters that help better understand climate change, natural calamities etc.</p>

<p>NISAR was to launch by mid-2024 but has been delayed owing to technical glitches in the satellite components. NISAR is expected to launch by 2024-end or early 2025.&nbsp;</p>


Two Indian astronauts from the existing pool of four astronaut designates (specially selected test pilots of the Indian Air Force) will be training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Texas, from early August, ISRO Chief, Dr.

Two Indian astronauts from the existing pool of four astronaut designates (specially selected test pilots of the Indian Air Force) will be training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Texas, from early August, ISRO Chief, Dr. S. Somanath told WION. He added that one of the two NASA-trained Indian astronauts would later fly on the upcoming Indo-US mission to the International Space Station. The NASA training of Indian astronauts and the Indo-US mission to the International Space Station (ISS) was announced by US President Joe Biden, during Indian Prime Minister Modi's state visit to the US in June 2023. The NASA training and the joint ISS mission are meant to serve as precursors to India's homegrown Human Spaceflight programme: Gaganyaan. “Collaboration on Human Spaceflight, including sending an #Indian astronaut to the International #space station in 2024” says @POTUS as he lists out areas of bilateral cooperation between #india & #USA Travel to @Space_Station & working there will prep astronauts for Gaganyaan pic.twitter.com/mJfcX4sKdP — Sidharth.M.P (@sdhrthmp) June 23, 2023 × Responding to a query from WION, US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti expressed confidence that the Indo-US crewed mission to the ISS would take place by 2024-end. The question was raised based on recent reports that this mission would be pushed to early 2025. In fact, President Biden had specifically announced in June 2023 that the joint crewed mission would be executed in 2024. Ambassador Garcetti was speaking at the US-India Defence Conclave organised by CUTS International. Incidentally, this Indo-US astronaut mission comes forty years after India's first and only astronaut Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma flew on a Soyuz T-11 rocket to the Soviet Salyut-7 Space station in April 1984. Indian Air Force's Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma (centre), flight engineer Gennady Strekalov (L) and commander Yury Malyshev (R) alongside the screengrabs of the-then Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's interaction with Rakesh Sharma | spacefacts.de/YouTube via Indian National Congress Queried on the specifics of the Indo-US mission, Ambassador Garcetti told WION that it would be executed by American private firms SpaceX and Axiom. SpaceX's Falcon9 rocket would be the launcher and the Crew Dragon would be the capsule, whereas Axiom will serve as a facilitator of this effort. For the last four years, SpaceX has been the lone US option to ferry astronauts to the space station and back. Boeing Starliner is meant to be the other American offering in this lucrative segment but the ongoing technical issues with Starliner and its overstaying in space would further delay routine missions by Starliner. What is India's Gaganyaan? India has revealed the names of four astronaut candidates who are to fly on the country's homegrown 'Gaganyaan' programme that aims to fly an astronaut-carrying capsule to earth orbit (400kms above the planet's surface) and bring them back safely for an oceanic splashdown landing. Gaganyaan would be carried out by the Indian Space Agency ISRO, with test pilots of the Indian Air Force, serving as the crew members. The four candidates have already completed their training at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, Moscow, and are presently undergoing training at ISRO and Indian Air Force facilities, while also assisting ISRO teams in designing and developing some systems required for Gaganyaan. India's best-kept secret of the last 5yrs - #indian astronaut candidates who have been training for #isro #gaganyaan #india #space pic.twitter.com/j9Uxd2qyXD — Sidharth.M.P (@sdhrthmp) February 27, 2024 × Gaganyaan is the first step in a series of sustained human spaceflight missions that India wants to carry out in a phased manner. By the end of this decade, India hopes to put an uncrewed space station in Earth orbit. By 2035, it would be used as a crewed Indian outpost that's circling the earth. India also plans to land its astronauts on the moon by 2040. Coming as a precursor to Gaganyaan, the Indo-US Astronaut mission would help India gain contemporary spaceflight experience, something that only Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma has from his Soviet-era spaceflight in 1984. With spaceflight technologies having drastically changed, the contemporary spaceflight experience would offer valuable technological and experiential insights. At present, India is in the process of gradually testing various systems and technologies required to execute an uncrewed Gaganyaan mission, slated for later this year or in early 2025. After a couple of flawless uncrewed missions, India will embark on the astronaut-carrying mission, perhaps, by 2026. ISRO Chief Dr S.Somanath had earlier told WION that human spaceflight is a highly challenging endeavour and how India only had the minimal experience of Rakesh Sharma's flight in 1984. Also watch | Indian astronauts to train at NASA from August × He added that the Indian astronauts have to "touch, feel, and experience space" and how the mission to Space station would help ISRO in its own Gaganyaan efforts. In another significant collaborative effort, India's GSLV Mk2 rocket will be launching an Indo-US satellite known as NISAR - NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR). NISAR is an all-weather earth observation satellite that will help study the vital signs of the earth, such as the temperature, ice melting, deforestation, and many more important parameters that help better understand climate change, natural calamities etc. NISAR was to launch by mid-2024 but has been delayed owing to technical glitches in the satellite components. NISAR is expected to launch by 2024-end or early 2025.

Exclusive: Indian astronauts' US training from August; spaceflight by year-end

<p><meta name="uuid" content="uuidY9Ol7P3OFAzg" /><meta charset="utf-8" /></p>

<p>Unravelling a best-kept secret, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the names of the four Indian astronauts who will be taking part in the country's 'Gaganyaan' Human spaceflight mission. The astronaut candidates are Indian Air Force test Pilots, who have been specifically shortlisted and trained to undergo the rigours of spaceflight. They are -Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan, Group Captain Ajith Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap, Wing Commader Shubhanshu Shukla.<br />
<br />
Having completed 13 months of rigorous training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre, near Moscow, Russia and various levels of theoretical and physical training in India, the astronauts are all set to undergo training in the US. Earlier, ISRO Chairman Dr. S. Somanath had confirmed to WION that the US leg of training would happen soon at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Texas.</p>

<p>It was 40 years ago, in 1984, that Indian Air Force Pilot Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to travel to space. He did so as part of the Soviet Interkosmos programme. Gaganyaan is India's own attempt at launching astronauts to space on a largely homegrown mission, with support from US, Russia, France, among others. Of these, Russia and US are the pioneers of human spaceflight, since the Cold War era.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As part of the Russian training at Star City, near Moscow, the Indian astronaut candidates were put through survival training in snow, in deserts, on water. Such a training is necessary to ensure that the crew can survive an emergency landing in any such hostile terrain and keep themselves safe, until help can arrive.&nbsp;</p>

<p>They also experienced micro-gravity (weightlessness) while flying in special aircraft that are meant to induce such a space-like condition. Astronauts have to be able to handle high G-forces that are experienced during spaceflight. People on earth experience a sustained load of 1G Force (which means that a person would experience and feel their actual body weight). However, those who are travelling in rapidly accelerating/decelerating fighter planes or rockets experience multi-fold G Force. WION had earlier reported that Indian astronauts would experience a sustained load of 4G for about 16 minutes, when ascending to space. Effectively, this means that an astronaut who weighs 70kg, would feel like he weighs 280kg.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Fighter pilots are known to handle such high G Force scenarios and encounter almost 9G during their missions and training. Which is why fighter pilots are the preferred candidates for astronaut training. However, in the case of a mid-flight abort of the astronaut-carrying capsule, the Gaganyaan astronauts would experience loads of 12G, for a few seconds.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>US training of Gaganyaan astronauts</strong></h2>

<p>The Indian astronaut candidates completed their Russian training and returned to India in 2021. Since then, they have also undergone several theoretical and practical sessions at ISRO's Human Spaceflight Centre and the Indian Air Force's Institute of Aerospace Medicine. They have also been visiting various ISRO centres, such as ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram and Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.</p>

<p>As a part of the Gaganyaan team, they are also assisting ISRO with the design and development of the crew-carrying capsule. At India's Human Spaceflight Centre in Bengaluru, they have also been undergoing simulator training and physical training.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In June 2023, pathbreaking initiatives towards Indo-US Space Cooperation were announced during the Joint Statement delivered by Prime Minister Modi and President Biden. It included the announcement by NASA to provide advanced training to Indian astronauts at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, with a goal of mounting a joint effort to the International Space Station in 2024.</p>

<p>Dr. S. Somanath had told WION that it is on India's wish list to have an astronaut flying to the International Space Station (ISS), as India's only reference point for Human Spaceflight is that of Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma (Retd), who flew in 1984. That maiden spaceflight by an Indian was on a Soviet-era crew capsule and since then the technologies have changed drastically.&nbsp;</p>

<p>"The US Human spaceflight scenario is completely changed and the launches are being carried out by the private firms and it is not being done by the US Government, as was the case earlier. As per the India-US (ISRO-NASA) arrangement, NASA will sponsor a seat in the private launch that will happen to the ISS, our astronaut will undergo training at their facility and will then be sent to the International Space Station," the ISRO Chief had told WION.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As part of the announcement made by President Biden, Indian astronaut candidates would be offered advanced training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, which is also known in the US as the Hub of Human Spaceflight. Established in 1961, this facility in Houston, Texas, started off as the Manned Spacecraft Centre, the home and Mission Control Center for the US Human Spaceflight programme. In 1973, the facility was renamed in honour of the late President and Texas Native Lyndon B Johnson. In more than six decades of operation, the facility has made notable advances in science, technology, engineering and medicine, thereby enabling crewed space exploration.</p>


Unravelling a best-kept secret, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the names of the four Indian astronauts who will be taking part in the country's 'Gaganyaan' Human spaceflight mission.

Unravelling a best-kept secret, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the names of the four Indian astronauts who will be taking part in the country's 'Gaganyaan' Human spaceflight mission. The astronaut candidates are Indian Air Force test Pilots, who have been specifically shortlisted and trained to undergo the rigours of spaceflight. They are -Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan, Group Captain Ajith Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap, Wing Commader Shubhanshu Shukla. Having completed 13 months of rigorous training at the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre, near Moscow, Russia and various levels of theoretical and physical training in India, the astronauts are all set to undergo training in the US. Earlier, ISRO Chairman Dr. S. Somanath had confirmed to WION that the US leg of training would happen soon at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Texas. It was 40 years ago, in 1984, that Indian Air Force Pilot Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to travel to space. He did so as part of the Soviet Interkosmos programme. Gaganyaan is India's own attempt at launching astronauts to space on a largely homegrown mission, with support from US, Russia, France, among others. Of these, Russia and US are the pioneers of human spaceflight, since the Cold War era. As part of the Russian training at Star City, near Moscow, the Indian astronaut candidates were put through survival training in snow, in deserts, on water. Such a training is necessary to ensure that the crew can survive an emergency landing in any such hostile terrain and keep themselves safe, until help can arrive. They also experienced micro-gravity (weightlessness) while flying in special aircraft that are meant to induce such a space-like condition. Astronauts have to be able to handle high G-forces that are experienced during spaceflight. People on earth experience a sustained load of 1G Force (which means that a person would experience and feel their actual body weight). However, those who are travelling in rapidly accelerating/decelerating fighter planes or rockets experience multi-fold G Force. WION had earlier reported that Indian astronauts would experience a sustained load of 4G for about 16 minutes, when ascending to space. Effectively, this means that an astronaut who weighs 70kg, would feel like he weighs 280kg. Fighter pilots are known to handle such high G Force scenarios and encounter almost 9G during their missions and training. Which is why fighter pilots are the preferred candidates for astronaut training. However, in the case of a mid-flight abort of the astronaut-carrying capsule, the Gaganyaan astronauts would experience loads of 12G, for a few seconds. US training of Gaganyaan astronauts The Indian astronaut candidates completed their Russian training and returned to India in 2021. Since then, they have also undergone several theoretical and practical sessions at ISRO's Human Spaceflight Centre and the Indian Air Force's Institute of Aerospace Medicine. They have also been visiting various ISRO centres, such as ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram and Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. As a part of the Gaganyaan team, they are also assisting ISRO with the design and development of the crew-carrying capsule. At India's Human Spaceflight Centre in Bengaluru, they have also been undergoing simulator training and physical training. In June 2023, pathbreaking initiatives towards Indo-US Space Cooperation were announced during the Joint Statement delivered by Prime Minister Modi and President Biden. It included the announcement by NASA to provide advanced training to Indian astronauts at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, with a goal of mounting a joint effort to the International Space Station in 2024. Dr. S. Somanath had told WION that it is on India's wish list to have an astronaut flying to the International Space Station (ISS), as India's only reference point for Human Spaceflight is that of Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma (Retd), who flew in 1984. That maiden spaceflight by an Indian was on a Soviet-era crew capsule and since then the technologies have changed drastically. "The US Human spaceflight scenario is completely changed and the launches are being carried out by the private firms and it is not being done by the US Government, as was the case earlier. As per the India-US (ISRO-NASA) arrangement, NASA will sponsor a seat in the private launch that will happen to the ISS, our astronaut will undergo training at their facility and will then be sent to the International Space Station," the ISRO Chief had told WION. As part of the announcement made by President Biden, Indian astronaut candidates would be offered advanced training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, which is also known in the US as the Hub of Human Spaceflight. Established in 1961, this facility in Houston, Texas, started off as the Manned Spacecraft Centre, the home and Mission Control Center for the US Human Spaceflight programme. In 1973, the facility was renamed in honour of the late President and Texas Native Lyndon B Johnson. In more than six decades of operation, the facility has made notable advances in science, technology, engineering and medicine, thereby enabling crewed space exploration.

Best of both worlds - Indian astronauts will benefit from Russian and US training

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Exclusive: Indian astronauts' US training from August; spaceflight by year-end

Best of both worlds - Indian astronauts will benefit from Russian and US training