After completing a groundbreaking 18-day mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Indian astronaut Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla and his Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) team are now headed home. The crew, traveling in SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, is set to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at 2:31 a.m. PT on July 15, 2025. This translates to 3:01 p.m. IST for audiences back in India.
SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, confirmed that Dragon will signal its imminent arrival with a sharp sonic boom just before hitting the water. After detaching from the ISS on July 14, 2025, the spacecraft is navigating a series of carefully calculated orbital maneuvers. The Dragon capsule will lower its altitude, separate from its trunk module, and begin its fiery descent through Earth’s atmosphere. The total return journey spans roughly 22.5 hours.
Group Captain Shukla piloted the Ax-4 mission alongside Commander Peggy Whitson from the United States, Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and Hungary’s Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu. Their journey began on June 25, 2025, when SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched the Dragon capsule from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
The Ax-4 team conducted more than 60 scientific investigations during their time on the ISS, representing collaboration across 31 nations including India, the U.S., Poland, Hungary, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Nigeria, and several European countries. Group Captain Shukla also completed seven microgravity experiments on behalf of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
As the Dragon returns to Earth, it carries back over 580 pounds of research materials and NASA hardware, vital for ongoing studies on Earth. Once Shukla and his fellow crew members land, medical teams will perform immediate checks. Shukla will then begin a seven-day rehabilitation process to help his body readjust to Earth’s gravity, following nearly three weeks of living in a microgravity environment.
This successful mission marks a significant milestone for international space collaboration and reinforces India’s growing role in space exploration.
