PM Modi meets Gaganyaan astronaut-designates
The Hindu
Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Prathap and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla – the four Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots are the ‘astronaut-designates’ who have been undergoing training for India’s Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, planned for 2025.
Group Captain Prashanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Prathap and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla – the four Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots are the ‘astronaut-designates’ who have been undergoing training for India’s Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, planned for 2025.
Their names were revealed for the first time by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a visit to the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thiruvanathapuram on February 27 (Tuesday).
The final crew for the mission will be picked from among the four. Shortlisted through a rigorous selection process, they have been undergoing training in various aspects of space flight, initially in Russia, and later at the Astronaut Training Facility established by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Bengaluru.
Mr. Modi also presented the four with the ‘wings’ for the Gaganyaan programme on the occasion.
According to ISRO, the Gaganyaan programme is designed to demonstrate indigenous capability to undertake human space flight mission to Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The mission is expected to pave way for a “sustained Indian human space exploration programme” in the long run.
In the run-up to the crewed mission to LEO, ISRO is in the process of conducting various tests. These include the Integrated Air Drop tests, Test Vehicle Missions, pad Abort Tests. There will be unmanned flights before the actual flight.
ISRO has also announced plans to send astronauts to the moon by 2040.
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