THE CONTEXT: Axiom Mission 4 launch, already rescheduled six times, is now delayed indefinitely after engineers fixed a Falcon 9 liquid-oxygen leak only to discover a fresh pressure signature in the ISS’s 24-year-old Zvezda service module; NASA, Roscosmos, SpaceX, and ISRO are jointly troubleshooting before setting a new window.
THE BACKGROUND:
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- India’s human-spaceflight journey began with Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma’s Soyuz-T11 flight (1984). A long hiatus followed until the Gaganyaan programme (approved 2018, ₹10,000 crore) aimed at a three-member crewed mission by 2027 after multiple abort-test successes in 2023-25.
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- Commercial crew era: Since 2020, NASA contracts have enabled private vehicles such as SpaceX Crew Dragon to ferry astronauts, spawning fully private missions like Axiom’s Ax-1 to Ax-4.
GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS
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- Liquid Oxygen (LOX) – cryogenic oxidiser stored below –183 °C; mixed with kerosene (RP-1) to fuel Merlin engines.
- Draco Thruster – 400 N (90 lbf) hydrazine monopropellant engine used for orbit-adjust maneuvers on Crew Dragon.
- Keep-Out Sphere (KOS) – 200 m radius safety zone around the ISS within which visiting vehicles must operate under stringent relative-navigation constraints.
- Phasing Maneuver – Orbit-raising or lowering burn timed to adjust a spacecraft’s position along its orbital path to synchronise with a target.
- Zvezda Service Module – Russian ISS module providing life support, propulsion, and crew quarters; launched in 2000, currently exhibiting minor leaks.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK — What, why, How
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- Orbital Mechanics: Reaching the ISS (altitude ≈ 400 km; velocity ≈ 7.66 km s⁻¹) requires a phasing orbit that minimises propellant via Hohmann-like transfers and multiple Earth revolutions, explaining Dragon’s ~28-hour rendezvous profile versus Soyuz’s “fast-track” six-hour sequence.
- Launch Windows: Precise microsecond-level launch-instant alignment ensures the ascending node of Falcon 9’s ground track intersects the ISS plane, conserving ∆v and life-support margins.
- Docking Protocol: Inside the 200 m “keep-out sphere”, lidar, GPS, and computer-vision guide Dragon’s 16 Draco thrusters (90 lbf each) for autonomous docking, with crewed manual fallback.
TECHNICAL DETAILS & SPECIFICATIONS:
| Parameter | Falcon 9 | Crew Dragon | Relevance to Ax-4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| First-stage engines | 9 Merlin-1D (1.71 MN total sea-level thrust) | – | Reusable booster: LOX leak detected during static-fire led to initial Ax-4 slip. |
| Second stage | Merlin-Vacuum (981 kN) | – | Delivers Dragon to 200 × 200 km phasing orbit. |
| Capsule propulsion | – | 16 Draco (400 N each) | Phasing, attitude control, proximity ops. |
| Life support | – | Environmental control & life-support system (ECLSS) rated 210 h | Allows schedule margin for ISS integration tests. |
THE CURRENT SCENARIO:
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- Dual-Fault Delay: Falcon 9’s liquid-oxygen (LOX) leak, subsequently remedied, was eclipsed by the Zvezda module’s fresh pressure signature, prompting NASA-Roscosmos-Axiom postponement “until root-cause closure.”
- ISRO’s Role: ISRO observers recommended low-temperature leak-testing and in-situ repairs, underscoring India’s growing systems-engineering capabilities.
THE SIGNIFICANCE:
1. Operational Know-how: Shukla’s pilot duties offer India real-time decision-making experience, feeding directly into Gaganyaan crew-procedures.
2. Strategic Signalling: Presence on a US-origin private flight showcases India’s strategic autonomy and multi-vector diplomacy amid Sino-US rivalry in low-Earth orbit (LEO).
3. Economic Multiplier: Participation supports India’s goal of increasing its global space economy share from ~2% to 8% by 2030.
DRIVERS
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- Shrinking launch costs via reusable boosters.
- NASA’s transition to Commercial LEO Destinations post-ISS-retirement 2030.
- Indian Space Policy 2023 opening “end-to-end” missions to Non-Government Entities and creating IN-SPACe as a single-window regulator.
INDIAN CONTEXT:
| Dimension | Developments | Policy Anchor |
|---|---|---|
| Human spaceflight | Gaganyaan: five abort tests (TV-D1, TV-D2 scheduled 2025), orbital uncrewed flight 2026, crewed flight 2027 | DoS programme approval, Budget 2025-26 ₹6,800 crore |
| Docking tech | ISRO’s SpaDeX twin-sat docking demo January 2025 | Technology road map towards Indian space station c. 2035 |
| Private investment | IN-SPACe ₹5 billion Technology Adoption Fund (2025); 79 MoUs cleared | Indian Space Policy 2023 |
THE ISSUES:
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- Technical Reliability – Ageing ISS modules (Zvezda launched 2000) create compounded risk vectors for visiting vehicles.
- Dependency – India relies on foreign launch corridors and Environmental Control and Life-Support Systems, which challenges the Atmanirbhar Bharat goals.
- Regulatory Vacuum – Space Activities Bill still in draft; unclear liability caps for private astronauts hamper insurance markets.
- Human Capital – Limited number of flight-proven Indian astronauts restricts peer-learning cycles.
- Funding Volatility – Cost-overruns and foreign-exchange exposure in procuring critical components (e.g., space-qualified avionics).
- Safety Culture – Need for an independent Accident Investigation Board akin to NTSB-style firewalled oversight.
THE CHALLENGES:
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- Orbital Infrastructure Gap after ISS retirement—India risks “station-less decade” if its proposed Bharatiya Antariksh Station slips beyond 2035.
- Space Debris & SSA—Dragon’s 28-hour phasing orbit intersects crowded LEO bands, necessitating high-fidelity conjunction assessment.
- Geo-Political Risk—Sanctions or export controls can disrupt supply chains for life-support valves, radiation-shielding composites, and crew displays.
THE WAY FORWARD:
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- Legislate the Space Activities Act to clarify operator liability, safety certification, and private-astronaut insurance ceilings, catalysing venture finance.
- Constitute an independent Space Flight Safety Board with statutory powers to audit, recommend and publish incident reports, mirroring DGCA in civil aviation.
- Fast-track Gaganyaan subsystem indigenisation (≥70 % value-addition) via Production-Linked Incentives for space-grade avionics and life-support hardware.
- Establish a National Astronaut Training Centre in Bengaluru by 2026 with centrifuge, neutral-buoyancy and hyper-g training, reducing reliance on Russia/France.
- Integrate ISRO-IN-SPACe-private telemetry into a unified Space Situational Awareness network, feeding real-time conjunction data to crewed flights.
- Forge a Commercial LEO Station consortium with Quad nations, leveraging India’s docking-tech demonstrator to secure port rights post-ISS retirement.
- Expand Technology Adoption Fund to ₹15 billion by 2027 to scale private orbital-life-support and re-entry capsule enterprises, creating a domestic vendor base.
- Adopt a phased ‘risk-retirement’ launch schedule—uncrewed Dragon or HTV-X missions carrying Indian payloads yearly, validating bioscience protocols for human flights.
THE CONCLUSION:
Axiom Mission 4 is more than a delayed flight; it is a stress-test of international collaboration, private-sector dynamism, and India’s readiness for crewed space endeavours. By converting operational lessons into robust policy, technology and governance reforms, India can translate Shubhanshu Shukla’s voyage into a launchpad for a self-reliant, globally competitive and strategically secure space future.
UPSC PAST YEAR QUESTION:
Q. What is India’s plan to have its own space station and how will it benefit our space programme? 2019
MAINS PRACTICE QUESTION:
Q. Discuss the significance of India’s space programme, and suggest a policy architecture to maximise national gains.
SOURCE:
https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/expert-explains-why-axiom-4-matters-10057525/
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