NEW DELHI: Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, who recently returned to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) after completing the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), has shared a glimpse of his post-space rehabilitation journey. In a video posted on social media, Shukla is seen relearning how to walk and engaging in physical exercises as part of his recovery from the effects of microgravity.In his social media post, Shukla wrote, “I have received a lot of messages regarding my health and wishing me speedy recovery. I want to thank you all and also give an update. Experiencing microgravity our body goes through several changes like fluid shift, heart rate, balance readjustment, muscle loss. These are adaptations to the new environment. Once the body gets used to this and we return to gravity, these adjustments happen once again.““Though it varies for all astronauts, the body soon starts adapting to its new environment. I was surprised to observe the pace with which our body can adjust to new settings. In the pursuit of the unknown (space), you get to know more about yourself,” he added.IAF group captain Shukla successfully piloted the Dragon spacecraft named Grace back to Earth, alongside his Ax-4 crewmates. The spacecraft splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego on July 14 at 3:01 p.m. IST (2:31 a.m. PT), marking the end of their 18-day mission aboard the ISS. The crew had undocked from the orbital laboratory earlier that day.Group Captain Shukla made history by becoming the first Indian astronaut to visit the International Space Station. He is also among the chosen few set to fly on India’s upcoming Gaganyaan human spaceflight mission, where he will officially earn the title of “Gaganaut.”Back home, his family watched the livestream of the splashdown from Lucknow. His father, Shambhu Dayal Shukla, expressed pride and gratitude for his son’s achievement and the support received from across the nation.“We are feeling great, that my son landed properly. He also came out of the dragon, this is a really good thing. Not only us, but for the whole country, he went on behalf of the country. Prime Minister has given him blessings and what is there for him has been only through the PM’s efforts. I express my gratitude and thank him for this,” he said.Shambhu Dayal also acknowledged the congratulatory messages received from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, defence minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, and several other leaders.The Axiom-4 crew included Commander Peggy Whitson, European Space Agency astronaut Slawosz “Suave” Uznanski-Wisniewski from Poland, and Hungarian astronaut Tibor Kapu of the HUNOR program. During their stay aboard the ISS, the team actively participated in scientific research and public outreach efforts.NASA confirmed that the Dragon spacecraft returned with over 580 pounds of cargo, including hardware and data from more than 60 scientific experiments conducted during the mission.The mission began on June 25 with a launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft docked with the ISS on June 26 at 4:05 p.m. IST, earlier than scheduled, attaching to the station’s Harmony module.SpaceX kept the public updated on the reentry process through posts on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “Dragon’s deorbit burn is complete and the trunk has been jettisoned,” and later confirming, “Dragon’s nosecone is closed and secured for reentry. Splashdown in 26 minutes.”
