'Overwhelmed by Gratitude, Love and Beauty': Indian-Origin NASA Astronaut Anil Menon Sends First Message From ISS

Indian-origin NASA astronaut Anil Menon has shared his first message from the International Space Station (ISS), describing an overwhelming sense of gratitude and wonder after reaching the orbiting laboratory.

"Day 1 in orbit and I'm overwhelmed by gratitude, love, and beauty for this Earth we share. Hello from the international space station!" Menon wrote in a post on X.

The message comes after Menon embarked on his first spaceflight aboard Russia's Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft alongside Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. The three-member crew launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on July 14 for a long-duration mission aboard the ISS.

Anil Menon Begins Eight-Month ISS Mission

Menon and his crewmates are expected to spend around eight months in space as part of the Expedition 74 and 75 crews. During their stay aboard the ISS, the crew will support the operation and maintenance of the orbital laboratory while participating in scientific research conducted in microgravity.

The mission marks Menon's first journey into space and adds another chapter to a career that has spanned medicine, the military and human spaceflight.

From Doctor to Astronaut

Menon is a physician and US Air Force officer who was selected by NASA as an astronaut candidate in 2021. Before joining NASA's astronaut corps, he served as SpaceX's first flight surgeon and helped develop the company's medical programme for human spaceflight. He supported several crewed missions, including the historic Demo-2 flight that marked SpaceX's first crewed mission to the ISS.

Menon has also worked with NASA as a flight surgeon, supporting astronauts before, during and after space missions. His latest assignment puts him on the other side of that equation, experiencing life in microgravity himself during an extended stay hundreds of kilometres above Earth.

First Glimpse of Life in Orbit

Menon's brief message offers an early glimpse into his experience of seeing Earth from orbit for the first time. Astronauts aboard the ISS orbit Earth roughly every 90 minutes, giving the crew repeated views of the planet from space as they conduct experiments and maintain the station.

For Menon, the first day marks only the beginning of a mission that will keep him aboard the ISS for much of the coming year. His message, however, captured the experience in considerably simpler terms: gratitude, love and the beauty of the planet shared by everyone below.