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Gopichand Thotakura celebrates a successful mission in space. | Photo Credit: Blue Origin
India’s first civilian space tourist Gopichand Thotakura returned to the country on Monday (August 26, 2024) to a warm welcome in New Delhi. He has created a record of being the second Indian civilian to travel to space after former IAF pilot Rakesh Sharma, who traveled to space in 1984.
He was one of the six crew members of the New Shepherd-25 (NS-25) mission of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ space company Blue Origin.
The US-based entrepreneur told ANI, “This feeling was long awaited. I am very happy to be back home. It is a very proud moment for India as well. I feel honoured to represent the country…”
He talked about the possibility of ordinary people going into space. He said, “I believe space tourism is the future.”
“This feeling has been long awaited. I am very happy to be back home. It is a very proud moment for India as well. I am honoured to represent the country and very excited for everyone else to do something in this field with Origin or any other organisation,” Mr Thotakura added.
He said, “I am going home to meet my parents and grandparents. People around me are more excited.”
Mr Thotakura was born in Vijayawada and schooled in Visakhapatnam. After studying aeronautical engineering, he became a pilot trained in the US.
Earlier, in a statement to the media, Mr. Thotakura had described himself as the “first civilian Indian astronaut”. answering a question the hinduHe told thatHe will be an astronaut, because anyone who crosses the Kármán line – the boundary line that separates the Earth’s atmosphere and outer space, and is about 80km above sea level – is considered an astronaut.
He said, “I always wanted to go to space. When I came to the US in 2010, it meant either going through NASA or becoming an American citizen and these were barriers for me. Blue Origin opened up opportunities for me.” the hindu,
(including inputs) (ANI)
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