15 Jul 2025, 05:48:03 pm IST Shubhanshu Shukla Axiom Mission LIVE: Top Points Following an farewell from orbit where he praised India's ambition, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and the Axiom-4 crew have made a triumphant and safe return to Earth. The mission ended with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on July 15, 2025, successfully concluding their 18-day scientific expedition to the International Space Station. This safe return ended a 22.5-hour journey from the ISS. The Axiom-4 (Ax-4) mission was a landmark private spaceflight that took a multinational crew to the International Space Station (ISS). Before leaving the ISS, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla delivered a memorable farewell speech. Stating from space, a modern India looks "ambitious, fearless, confident and full of pride," and still appears "saare jahan se accha" (the best in the world). After an 18-day stay at the ISS where the crew conducted over 60 scientific experiments, the SpaceX Dragon capsule "Grace" successfully undocked. Following a 22.5-hour journey, the crew made a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California on July 15, 2025. Shukla's safe return was celebrated as a moment of immense pride in India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed him for inspiring "a billion dreams," and President Draupadi Murmu, J P Nadda and many others praised the mission as a "golden chapter" in India's space odyssey and a proud stride for its ambitions. Shukla's flight, where he performed seven India-specific experiments, is considered a vital learning experience for India's own upcoming crewed spaceflight program, Gaganyaan. 15 Jul 2025, 01:53:33 pm IST Shubhanshu Shukla Return LIVE Updates: Axiom 4 Crew Returns To Earth After Successful 18-Day Scientific Mission The four-member Axiom 4 mission had lifted off on June 25 and reached the ISS the next day. While they were supposed to stay for 14 days, the mission was extended by nearly three days due to unfavourable weather. The capsule's atmospheric re-entry will generate a sonic boom before it safely lands in the water.This concludes an 18-day mission for the crew who is returning with over 580 pounds of cargo and data from more than 60 experiments. During his time on the International Space Station, Shukla successfully completed all seven of his planned microgravity experiments.The entire return journey from the ISS takes about 22.5 hours. 15 Jul 2025, 01:53:33 pm IST Shubhanshu Shukla Return LIVE Updates: Ax-4 landing on ‘track’ says SpaceX The Dragon spacecraft, carrying the Ax-4 crew, will announce its arrival into Earth with a brief sonic boom prior to splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. A sonic boom is a loud, thunderous noise created when an object travels through the air faster than the speed of sound. The loud boom occurs when the object breaks the sound barrier due to its speed. 15 Jul 2025, 01:53:33 pm IST Shubhanshu Shukla Return Live Update: First Indian Astronaut On ISS To Splash Down Today As Axiom-4 Returns To Earth The Axiom-4 crew, India’s Group Captain Shubanshu Shukla, alongside Commander Peggy Whitson from the United States, European Space Agency project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski from Poland, and Hungary’s Tibor Kapu, undocked from the International Space Station at 7:15 a.m. EDT (4:45 p.m. IST) on Monday, 14 July 2025 aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule, named Grace.