Meet the 4 astronauts of India’s crewed space mission Gaganyaan

Mangalore Today News Network/NDTV

New Delhi, Feb 27, 2024: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today revealed the name of four astronauts who have been selected for the Gaganyaan Mission. The astronauts are undergoing training for the country’s maiden human space flight mission.

 

The four astronauts are - Prashanth Nair, Angad Prathap, Ajit Krishnan, and Shubhanshu Shukla.

The Gaganyaan Mission is India’s first human space flight program for which extensive preparations are underway at various ISRO centres.

The Gaganyaan project envisages a demonstration of human spaceflight capability by launching crew members into an orbit of 400 km for a three-day mission and bringing them back safely to earth by landing in Indian sea waters.

ISRO successfully completed the acceptance tests of the flight engine identified for the first unmanned Gaganyaan (G1) mission, tentatively scheduled for Q2 of 2024. This engine will power the upper stage of the human-rated LVM3 vehicle and has a thrust capability of 19 to 22 tonnes with a specific impulse of 442.5 seconds.

In a stellar display of prowess, India soared to new heights in 2023 with the successful soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the South Pole of the Moon and the launch of Aditya-L1, India’s first solar mission.

Among other feats India now aims for are the Gaganyaan Mission in 2024-2025, setting up ’Bharatiya Antariksha Station’ by 2035, and sending the first Indian to the Moon by 2040.