Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla Mesmerises Schoolkids from ISS in Live Video Call

Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla—India’s first Air Force officer to live aboard the International Space Station—sent waves of awe through his hometown of Lucknow as he connected live with family and hundreds of children on July 4. In a tele-bridge link from 400 km above Earth, Shukla floated through his orbital home, guiding loved ones and students on a tour of life in microgravity.

His sister, Shuchi Mishra, noted the same childhood curiosity shining back in his eyes. Their mother, Asha, and father, Shambu Dayal, expressed deep pride and relief as Shukla demonstrated everyday routines—eating, sleeping, exercising while tethered to the ISS walls after initial struggles adapting to weightlessness. He recounted how his body adjusted—initial nausea, disorientation, puffy face—before sync’d with the station’s cycle of 16 sunrises each day.

Speaking to over 500 students from City Montessori School and another group in Thiruvananthapuram, Shukla described how astronauts live on paste-form food to prevent floating crumbs, use spill-resistant water tubes, and exercise on specially designed machines while strapped down. Young Divyansh Agrawal and Shatakshi Srivastava were entranced by his descriptions of zero‑G life—especially drifting to sleep in sleeping bags tied to surfaces.

For the Shukla family, the 10-minute glimpse into life aboard the ISS was electrifying. As Shukla floated out of frame, they responded simply: “He is our hero”.