List of Indian astronauts

For foreign astronauts of Indian origin, see List of astronauts of Indian origin.

On 3 April 1984, Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to travel to space. He traveled on board Soyuz T-11 to the space station Salyut 7 as part of the Soviet Interkosmos programme. ^[1] In the late 2000s, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced that it is working on the technologies required for sending humans to space as a part of the Indian Human Spaceflight Programme. ^{[2] [3]}

Members of the planned Gaganyaan program of the Indian Space Research Organisation

In 2018, the Government of India formally announced the launch of the Gaganyaan programme, which aimed to put a man in space by 2022. ^[4] However, the plans were delayed partly due to the impact of COVID-19. ^[5] As per the revised timelines, the first crewed flight is planned as a part of Gaganyaan-4 , scheduled to launch in 2027. ^{[6] [7]} ) On 27 February 2024, four men (Gaganyatri) – Ajit Krishnan, Angad Pratap, Prasanth Nair, and Shubhanshu Shukla, from the Indian Air Force were announced as candidates for the human spaceflight programme. ^[8] They trained at Russia's Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, where Sharma had trained in 1984. ^[9] Nair and Shukla trained at NASA facilities in preparation for their participation in the Axiom Mission 4 to the International Space Station. ^[10] Shukla flew to space on 25 June 2025 as a part of the mission, ^{[11] [12]} while Nair was his backup. ^[13]

On 19 May 2024, Gopichand Thotakura became the first Indian to take a suborbital flight to space, as a part of the Blue Origin NS-25 mission. ^[14]

List

Apart from the Indians who had traveled to space, the list also includes those who have trained for space travel but have not traveled to space. ^[a]

Name	Image	Birth	Time in Space	Missions	Notes
Rakesh Sharma		13 January 1949	7 days, 21 hours, 40 minutes	Soyuz T-11 (3 April 1984) [15]	First Indian in space. [16]
Ravish Malhotra		25 December 1943	—N/a	—N/a	Backup for Sharma in Soyuz T-11. [17]
Gopichand Thotakura		1993	9 minutes, 53 seconds	Blue Origin NS-25 (19 May 2024) [18]	Second Indian in space. [18] First Indian to take a suborbital flight to space. [14]
Shubhanshu Shukla		10 October 1985	20 days, 2 hours and 59 minutes	Axiom Mission 4 (25 June 2025) [19]	Second Indian in outer space. [20] [21] Longest-stay by an Indian in space. [22] First Indian in ISS. [23] [24]
Prasanth Nair		26 August 1976	—N/a	—N/a	Backup for Shukla on Axiom Mission 4. [25]
Ajit Krishnan		19 April 1982	—N/a	—N/a	Part of Gaganyaan. [26]
Angad Pratap		17 July 1982	—N/a	—N/a	Part of Gaganyaan. [26]

See also

• History of spaceflight
• Human spaceflight
• List of Asian astronauts
• List of astronauts by selection

Notes

1. Technically, the term 'astronaut' refers to only persons trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program as a crew member of a spacecraft.

References

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2. "ISRO considering manned space mission: Nair". The Hindu . 9 August 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
3. "India announces first manned space mission". BBC News . 27 January 2010. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
4. "Indian will take national flag to space on board Gaganyaan by 2022, says PM Narendra Modi in Independence Day speech". The Hindustan Times . 15 August 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
5. Kumar, Chethan (11 June 2020). "Gaganyaan mission: No Gaganyaan unmanned flight this year". The Times of India . Retrieved 13 June 2020.
6. "India delays its 1st-ever Gaganyaan astronaut launch to 2026". Space.com . 4 November 2024. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
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9. "Gaganyaan Mission: How 4 Indian astronauts were trained in Russia - Gaganyaan astronauts named". The Economic Times . Retrieved 17 November 2025.
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12. "Gaganyatri Shubhanshu Shukla called Dr V Narayanan, Chairman, ISRO and acknowledged the efforts of the ISRO team in ensuring his safe travel to the ISS". ISRO (Press release). Retrieved 9 July 2025.
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14. John, Nirmal (12 April 2024). "Meet Gopichand Thotakura, the 2nd Indian citizen in space after Rakesh Sharma". The Economic Times . ISSN   0013-0389 . Retrieved 29 October 2024.
15. "Cosmonaut Biography: Rakesh Sharma". Spacefacts.de. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
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17. Abraham, Rohan (23 July 2019). "'Rakesh Sharma or Ravish Malhotra? Only one of us would go up into space'". The Economic Times . Retrieved 7 June 2024.
18. "Meet Gopichand Thotakura: Vijayawada-born pilot to become 2nd Indian to fly to space – A look at his inspiring journey". ET Now. 13 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
19. "Falcon 9 Block 5 | Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4)". Next Space flight. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
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22. "Shubhanshu Shukla breaks mentor Rakesh Sharma's 41-year-old space record". India Today . 3 July 2025. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
23. "'Thank you, ISRO': Gaganyatri Shubhanshu Shukla hails India's space agency for safe journey to ISS". The Economic Times . 7 July 2025. ISSN   0013-0389 . Retrieved 11 July 2025.
24. "Who is Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian astronaut to travel to the International Space Station?". The Times of India . 9 June 2025. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 9 June 2025.
25. "Meet 4 astronauts selected for Gaganyaan mission". The Times of India . 27 February 2024. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 1 June 2025.
26. Pandey, Geeta (27 February 2024). "Gaganyaan: India names astronauts for maiden space flight". BBC News . Retrieved 27 February 2024.