Indian Air Force Captain and astronaut Shubhanshu Sukla on Thursday shared an update about his journey to the International Space Station (ISS). There are a total of 4 fellow astronauts with him – Peggy Whitson, Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski, and Hungary’s Tibor Kapu. You might be wondering who the fourth one is! Well, Shukla, while speaking from space, revealed that he has taken a baby swan with him to space.
The reason the soft toy is chosen as a zero-gravity indicator is because it represents a deeper meaning. Sharing details about his space journey, Shukla, who is piloting for Axiom Mission 4, said, “Namaskar from space! I am thrilled to be here with my fellow astronauts. What a ride it was.” According to him, in Indian culture, the Swan is considered to be a symbol of wisdom.
WATCH THE VIDEO HERE:
#WATCH | “Namaskar from space! I am thrilled to be here with my fellow astronauts. What a ride it was,” says Indian astronaut Group Captain Subhanshu, who is piloting #AxiomMission4, as he gives details about his journey into space.
Carrying a soft toy Swan, he says, in Indian… pic.twitter.com/Z09Mkxhfdj
---Advertisement---— ANI (@ANI) June 26, 2025
Shukla said, “We showed you joy and grace. We know this is a swan, a great symbol. It looks really cute but we have a very important…in Indian culture about swan swmbolizes wisdom. It also has a ability to discern. This means a lot more. It has more meaning attached to it.”