Group Captains Shubhanshu Shukla & Prashanth Nair, who reached Houston, US, late Saturday night to be part of the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station (ISS), have begun their training routine.

While Axiom Space also confirmed that the astronauts have reached Houston, sources from the Gaganyaan mission said the duo’s training began as early as 5 August. Axiom-4 will launch to the orbiting laboratory aboard a SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft from Florida, and the crew is expected to spend up to 14 days on the space station. Last week, Isro said it signed a space flight agreement (SFA) with Axiom Space to send the two Gaganyaan astronaut-designates to the US and that its Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) had recommended that Shukla be the prime mission pilot, with Nair serving as the backup.

As things stand, Shukla will be travelling to the ISS with three other crew members: Commander Peggy Whitson, Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański from Poland going as part of ESA, and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu of Hungary. Shukla will be the prime mission pilot. The assigned crew members are pending approval to fly to the ISS by the Multilateral Crew Operations Panel (MCOP). MCOP decisions are made in consensus by representatives from all five-space station international partners: NASA, ESA, Roscosmos, JAXA, & Canadian Space Agency.“Axiom-4 represents our continued efforts to build opportunities for countries to research, innovate, test, and engage with people around the world while in low-Earth orbit,” Axiom Space CEO Michael Suffredini said in a statement. Pointing out that the mission will broaden horizons for nations with ambitious goals of advancing scientific, technological, and economic pursuits, Suffredini said.

“Our collaboration with ESA for a second time and the inclusion of Hungary and India underscores our ability to cultivate global partners, expand the scope of exploration, and open up new avenues to grow a global space economy.” Peggy Whitson, Ax-4 commander, said that with a culturally diverse crew, the mission was not only advancing scientific knowledge but also fostering international collaboration. “The mission will place significant emphasis on scientific research, technology demonstrations, and the commercialisation of space. …Additionally, the mission aims to foster cooperation by sharing knowledge, resources, and opportunities with our partners, solidifying these nations as leaders within the growing space community,” Axiom said.

Agencies