NASA astronaut shares picture of Indian flag aboard ISS on 76th Independence Day

Indian-American NASA astronaut Raja Chari, on Monday, shared a picture featuring the Indian flag resting on one of the cupola windows of the International Space Station (ISS). Taking to Twitter, the astronaut wished the Indian diaspora on India's 76th Independence Day and underscored the contributions of Indians across the globe including in NASA. He even shared a picture of Hyderabad taken from the space station as it is his immigrant father's hometown. 

"On Indian Independence eve I’m reminded of the Indian diaspora that I could see from the space station where my immigrant father’s hometown of Hyderabad shines bright", Chari wrote in his tweet. "NASA is just 1 place Indian Americans make a difference every day. Looking forward to @IndianEmbassyUS celebration", he added. 

Responding to Chari's message, India's Ambassador to the US, Taranjit Singh Sandhu wrote, "Tiranga in Space. Indeed Indian Diaspora is a vital link in the India-America partnership. Appreciate Raja Chari's message".

International Space Station wishes India on 76th Independence Day

Ahead of August 15, Italian astronaut Samantha Christoforetti also wished India on its 76th Independence Day on behalf of the European Space Agency (ESA), NASA, and other international partners. "Greetings from the International Space Station. It is a pleasure to congratulate India on 75 years of Independence", the astronaut said in a video shared by the ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation).

"On the behalf of ESA, NASA, and all international partners, I would like to wish the best of luck to ISRO as it works on the Gaganyaan programme and gets ready to send humans into space. Expanding our partnership with ISRO and exploring the universe together is a goal for all of us for future space explorations", Christoforetti further said. 

Responding to the heartfelt message, ISRO thanked all the space station partners as it wrote, "Thank you NASA, ESA and all the partners of the International Space Station for the wishes on Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav". Ambassador Sandhu also shared the video that was released on the 103rd birth anniversary of Vikram Sarabhai.