Officials Meet Indian Astronauts Training At NASA

HOUSTON, TX (ANI) – The Indian Ambassador to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, along with US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer, visited Houston to highlight recent advancements in India-US space cooperation and discuss future steps to enhance the partnership between the two countries.

The officials met with representatives from NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), including two ISRO astronauts who are training at NASA’s Johnson Space Center for a proposed mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in 2025.

A key focus of the discussions was a jointly developed NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar Earth Science satellite, which is planned for launch in 2025. The officials also engaged with members of the private space sector to explore innovative ways to strengthen both the Indian and American commercial space industries.

This collaboration follows a commitment made by President Biden and Prime Minister Modi in June 2023 to expand cooperation across all sectors of space. The partnership gained momentum with India’s signing of the Artemis Accords, marking a significant milestone in civil, security, and commercial space cooperation between the two nations.

The meeting in Houston also reviewed recent achievements, such as the selection of two ISRO astronauts for training at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, setting the stage for the first-ever joint mission between American and Indian astronauts at the ISS. Discussions also covered the launch of the Axiom-4 mission and the completion of a Strategic Framework for Human Spaceflight Cooperation, which aims to enhance interoperability in space operations.