When Shubhanshu Shukla 'vanished' into spacesuit bag mid zero-gravity nap

Astronaut and Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla looked back on Saturday (July 4) at his time on the same day last year aboard the International Space Station (ISS), recalling how he finally pulled off a tough Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)-assigned STEM experiment after five days of struggle.

Speaking at an event in Bengaluru related to his recently launched book, The Second Orbit: Belief of a Man… Dream of 1.4 Billion Hearts, Shukla, the first Indian to visit the ISS, said, “Today is July 4 and last year, this day I was not on Earth. I was in space on the International Space Station.”

Also read: 'What a ride': Shubhanshu Shukla after becoming 2nd Indian to travel to space

He also shared funny experiences from his space journey, saying he got lost while taking a nap in the spacecraft, thanks to zero gravity, something that left his colleagues flummoxed.

Shukla's bubble-inside-bubble test

Reflecting on his stint on the ISS, he described one particular STEM task that had taken him multiple days to crack. The space agency had asked him to form a bubble of water, place a bubble of air within it, and then introduce a bubble of coffee inside that air bubble.

“So three bubbles in space and I had been struggling for the past five days to do that. It was very difficult for me to just capture this water bubble and today (July 4) was the day when I was successfully able to do it. I was so happy that this could finally be achieved on this day,” Shukla said.

The 40-year-old Lucknow-born astronaut was part of a four-member crew that spent 18 days aboard the ISS as part of NASA's Axiom-4 mission. It marked the return of an Indian to space after four decades. Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma was the first to do so in 1984.

The astronaut said he captured his first photograph of the entire Earth from the ISS through the cupola window using a special lens.

Shukla hails teamwork

He said that all these were possible only because of the efforts of a large team on the ground.

“When we send or launch someone to space, it takes thousands of people, a huge team on ground and every single one of them matters. That is, in a sense, what this book is about, partly,” he said about his publication.

Also read: Shubhanshu Shukla recalls physical toll of space travel, says 'sky is not the limit'

The group captain noted that the book isn’t meant to celebrate any one person’s success, but instead aims to show that big achievements come from people working together as a team — and that teamwork ultimately shapes “how far you go” and “what great accomplishments you can do”.

Writing a book to reach more people

Shukla said he never thought that he would write a book when he landed back in India after the mission, but then he realised very soon that it was not possible for him to reach everywhere to share this story, and probably writing a book would be a good way to share it.

Sharing the funniest moment of his space mission, Shukla said that while space is an environment where “life should not exist”, it also throws up amusing situations.

Recalling the journey to the ISS, Shukla said the crew had about 22 hours between reaching orbit and docking with the station, giving them some time to sleep.

When Shukla 'got lost' in spacecraft

He explained that, as there is no bed in space, astronauts can sleep anywhere inside the spacecraft. While his crewmates strapped themselves to their seats, Shukla chose to squeeze beneath one of the seats and, feeling cold, slipped into a large black bag meant for storing spacesuits.

“I kept going inside... till almost my shoulders were inside the bag, and I slept comfortably,” he said.

But in zero gravity, Shukla said that his body slowly drifted while he was asleep, leaving only what looked like another bag in the capsule.

“When the others woke up and decided to have a meal, they couldn't find me. They saw four bags and only three crew members. For some time, it was a mystery-how can you lose someone in such a small capsule in space?” he said, drawing laughter from the audience.

Also read: Shubhanshu Shukla: Nationality doesn’t matter in space; entire Earth is your identity

Shukla said such light-hearted incidents, along with stories from his fellow astronauts, have been captured in his book to offer readers a glimpse into the human side of life in space.

Have travelled 100 metres for each Indian: Shukla

According to Shukla, while he was in orbit, he went around the Earth 320 times and travelled a distance of about 1.4 crore kilometers during his stay in space.

“If we take 140 crore Indians, I’ve travelled about 100 metres for each one of you. In some sense, all of you have been a part of this journey,” he said.

Former ISRO Chairman S Somanath, who was also part of the book launch event, said, while responding to a question on India's Gaganyaan mission, that it follows a much more challenging path than astronaut Shukla's flight.

He, however, said the experience gained through Shukla’s mission would contribute significantly to the Gaganyaan programme.

(With agency inputs)