Axiom -4 (Ax-4) mission is the beginning of the Indian human space flight. In this mission, a commercial flight has been used operated by Axiom-4, a Houston-based private company. There is collaboration between NASA, ISRO, ESA and SpaceX. Shubhanshu Shukla pilots this mission. He is the second in India to go into space. The space craft docked into International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, 26th June 2025. Shukla is the first Indian to visit NASA’s orbiting laboratory. Between Rakesh Sharma’s space flight aboard Soyuz in 1984 and Shukla’s AX-4, there is a gap of 41 years. Rakesh Sharma’s mission was symbolic, but Shukla’s mission will lay the foundation for the future of humanity. It’s a 14-day mission.

AX-4 will conduct a series of experiments. Some of the results will facilitate ISRO’s future manned flights into space. It will help India set up its own space station.

There are seven experiments related to health and growth of crops in gravity-less environment. There are experiments related to microorganisms (cyanobacteria which produce energy through photosynthesis on the lines of plants). Microorganism study may give clues to deep space exploration and long-term space habitation.

There will be an experiment on germination and growth of sprouts. One experiment will be on seeds and how they are influenced. One experiment on microalgae will be to study oxygen generation system, and act as a food source.

ISRO will study muscle behaviors by studying muscle degradation on account of ageing and natural causes and the weight of a person. These two causes can be isolated into space, since weight factor is eliminated. We can focus on muscle changes purely due to natural reasons.

AX-4 is a giant leap forward and for India. Its scientific objectives will benefit the whole of humanity.