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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Oliver Holmes

India to send first astronaut on mission to International Space Station

Tibor Kapu, Shubhanshu Shukla, Peggy Whitson, Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski sitting in space suits in a space capsule
The ISS mission crew (left to right): Tibor Kapu, Shubhanshu Shukla, commander Peggy Whitson and Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski during training. Photograph: Axiom Space

The first Indian astronaut to visit the International Space Station is due to blast off as part of an effort by the world’s most populous nation to catch up with the US, Russia and China in human space flight missions.

Shubhanshu Shukla, a 39-year-old air force fighter pilot, is is part of four-person mission launching on Tuesday from the US with the private company Axiom Space, which is using a SpaceX capsule.

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