Axiom-4 Mission: After 18 days aboard ISS, Shubhanshu Shukla is set to return to Earth today

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to reach the International Space Station (ISS), is set to return to Earth on Tuesday, marking the end of a historic mission under Axiom Space's Ax-4 program.

After spending 18 remarkable days aboard the orbital lab, Shukla and his three international crewmates are scheduled to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California at 3:01 pm IST (4:31 am CT).

Undocking and return journey aboard Dragon ‘Grace’

Shukla, alongside astronauts Peggy Whitson (USA), Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski (Poland), and Tibor Kapu (Hungary), boarded SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft “Grace” at 3:30 am CT (2 PM IST) on Monday. The spacecraft undocked from the ISS’s Harmony module at 7:15 am ET (4:45 pm IST).

NASA confirmed the hatch closure occurred at 5:07 am EDT. Shortly after, SpaceX announced via its official X account, “Dragon separation confirmed!” adding, “Dragon is GO to undock from the Space Station.”

This marks the end of a nearly 23-hour return journey to Earth. Upon splashdown, recovery teams will retrieve the crew. Shukla will then begin a 7-day rehabilitation process to help his body adjust to Earth’s gravity after more than two weeks in space.

Extended stay enabled more research and collaboration

Shukla’s original 14-day mission was extended to 18 days to allow additional time for scientific research and collaborative work aboard the ISS. His participation in the Ax-4 mission makes him only the second Indian astronaut to travel to space, following Rakesh Sharma’s mission in 1984.

In a heartfelt message from orbit, Shukla called the experience “an incredible journey,” and thanked ISRO, NASA, Axiom Space, and SpaceX. Looking down from the ISS cupola, he added, “India still looks better than the whole world.”