Salyut - 1st space station, 1971 - 1991

• In 1971, the Soviet Union launched the first-ever space station, Salyut (salute), and
• followed that up by launching six more improved space stations, up to Salyut 7.

Rakesh Sharma, 1984

• Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, India’s first astronaut to go to space in 1984, spent eight days on board Salyut 7 in a joint operation between ISRO and the Soviet Interkosmos space agency.

• Salyut 7 finally left orbit in 1991.

Mir Space station, 1986 - 2001

• Experience gained from the Salyut stations helped the Soviet Union launch the Mir Space Station in 1986.

• The Mir station remained in orbit till 2001, spending 15 years in space.

Valeri Polyakov, longest human space mission

• Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov, who spent 438 days on the Mir station, holds the record for the longest human space mission till now.

ISS, 2000

• Currently, two space stations are operational in the Earth’s orbit — the ISS, launched in 2000 as a collaboration between five space agencies in the United States of America, Canada, Japan, Europe, and Russia
• A Salyut-derived module remains in orbit at the core of the Russian segment of the ISS. Print

January 2025

First private space station - Haven - 1

• The California startup Vast has announced the construction of the first private space station, Haven-1, set to launch this year.

• The interior was designed by a former Apple designer, making it, without exaggeration, the most stylish module in orbit.

• Initially, the station will consist of a single module, but by 2028, the team promises to expand the project to Haven-2, which will allow docking of up to eight similar modules.

March 2025

Sunita and Butch returns safely after their prolonged trip to International Space Stations

Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore safely returned to Earth off the Florida coast, ending a historic mission that extended from an initial eight days to nine months at the International Space Station

June 2025

Axiom 4 getting delayed due to Russia's component in ISS

• A leak detected in the Russian Zvezda module, near the rear of the International Space Station (ISS) has further delayed the launch of the Axiom-4 Mission.
• This is the fourth time the Axiom-4 Mission, which marks an Indian astronaut’s return to space after 41 years, has been postponed.
• The mission was initially set to launch on 29 May but was pushed to 8 June because of problems identified in the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
• It was subsequently moved to 9 June because of readiness issues in the SpaceX Falcon rocket, and then again to 10 June because of unfavourable weather conditions.
• On 10 June, Axiom announced that it had noticed a liquid oxygen leak in the rocket during the dry run and was postponing the launch again Print