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Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to visit the ISS, shared a meal with fellow astronauts before his return trip. He also spoke with PM Modi, sharing his experience and the pride he felt representing India in space.
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla will start his return trip on July 14 after a 14-day mission to the International Space Station. Days before his homecoming, he and other crew members attended a feast, showed images from the orbiting laboratory. The recently made public photos show Shukla and his coworkers enjoying the dinner while floating in zero gravity and grinning widely.
NASA said Friday night that Shukla and three other crew members will start their return trip on July 14. Several hours after the undocking, a splashdown is anticipated in the Pacific Ocean close to the California coast.
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Following Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma's 1984 space mission, Group Captain Shukla became the second Indian astronaut and the first Indian to visit the International Space Station.
Shukla's conversation with PM Modi
Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to visit the ISS, told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he had brought traditional Indian sweets to space, including gajar ka halwa and aamras (mango pulp juice), and that he had shared them with his fellow astronauts.
"Today, you are away from our motherland, but you are the closest to the hearts of Indians... Aapke naam mein bhi shubh hai aur aapki yatra naye yug ka shubharambh bhi hai," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Shubhanshu Shukla.
"As we talk right now, 140 crore Indians are feeling the same way about you. I stand here as a symbol of all Indians' joy, pride, and aspirations. I want to express my sincere congratulations and wish you the best of luck on your mission as you fly our national flag into space," the prime minister said.
Shukla said in his discussion with Prime Minister Modi that India seems larger and more majestic from space than it does on a map.