New Delhi: The country waited with bated breath for Shubhanshu Shukla to create history, taking India for the first time to the International Space Station (ISS).
However, the launch of Axiom-4 (Ax4) mission, of which Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Shubhanshu is a part, was on Monday postponed for a third time.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) informed that the Ax4 mission, which was due to take off on Monday, will now be launched into space on June 11 with the targeted time being 5.30 pm (IST).
The reason behind the latest delay is unfavourable weather conditions at the Kennedy Space Center.
“Due to weather conditions, the launch of Axiom-4 mission for sending Indian Gaganyatri to International Space Station is postponed from 10th June 2025 to 11th June 2025. The targeted time of launch is 5.30 PM IST on 11th June 2025,” ISRO posted on X.
Shubhanshu’s travel to space will be the second human spaceflight for India, 41 years after Rakesh Sharma scripted history by undertaking a journey to space onboard Soviet Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft in 1984.
Shubhanshu apart, the Ax-4 mission includes US Commander Peggy Whitson, specialists Tigor Kapu of Hungary and Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland. They will travel aboard a new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, launched by a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center.
The mission was initially scheduled to be launched on May 29 and was delayed to June 8. It was then pushed to June 10 due to technical issues.