India launches first astronaut to space station

India will send its first astronaut, Shubhanshu Shukla, to the International Space Station on Tuesday, marking a significant step in its human spaceflight program. Shukla, a 39-year-old fighter pilot, will join a four-person mission aboard a SpaceX capsule, launched from the US. The mission, costing over $60 million, is seen as a defining moment for India's space ambitions. This mission follows India's recent success in landing an unmanned craft on the moon and precedes plans for a future Indian human spaceflight mission and a lunar mission by 2040.