Washington: NASA astronaut Anil Menon, who traces his roots to Kerala, on Tuesday lifted off aboard the Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft from Kazakhstan on his maiden mission to the International Space Station (ISS), where he will spend about eight months conducting scientific research and technology demonstrations.

The Roscosmos spacecraft, carrying Menon and Russian cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina, blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome at 8.17 pm IST. Following a two-orbit, three-hour journey, the spacecraft is scheduled to dock automatically with the ISS's Prichal module at 11.56 pm IST.

The mission marks Menon's first spaceflight and the second for both Dubrov and Kikina, NASA said. Family members, including Menon's wife, astronaut Anna Wilhelm, and NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, were present at the Baikonur Cosmodrome to witness the launch.

Once aboard the ISS, the trio will join NASA astronauts Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway and Chris Williams, European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergei Mikaev and Andrey Fedyaev. The crew is expected to remain aboard the orbiting laboratory until April 2027.

According to NASA, Menon will conduct scientific research and technology demonstrations aimed at advancing human space exploration while generating benefits for life on Earth.

His work will focus on understanding the physiological effects of long-duration spaceflight by studying how microgravity alters blood flow, vein structure and blood composition in astronauts. He will also help test technologies to produce intravenous fluids using the station's potable water system, a capability that could prove crucial during future deep-space missions with limited medical supplies.

In addition, Menon will contribute to research on manufacturing semiconductor crystals in space for use in high-performance computing, artificial intelligence and advanced medical devices. He will also carry out ultrasound investigations using augmented reality and artificial intelligence, technologies that could reduce astronauts' dependence on medical support from Earth during future missions.

Meanwhile, Russia's agency for international humanitarian cooperation, Rossotrudnichestvo, said the Soyuz rocket is carrying drawings created by Indian schoolchildren. The artwork was selected through the "First Forever" competition, organised to mark the 65th anniversary of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin's historic spaceflight and to celebrate Indo-Russian cooperation in space exploration.

Born in Minneapolis to Indian and Ukrainian immigrant parents, the 49-year-old Menon is an emergency medicine physician and a US Space Force colonel. His father, K P Shankaran Menon, is from Ottapalam in Kerala's Palakkad district, while his mother, Elizabeth, emigrated from Ukraine to the United States.

Before joining NASA, Menon served with the US Air Force in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom and also worked with the Himalayan Rescue Association, providing medical care to climbers on Mount Everest. He later spent a year in India as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar, supporting polio vaccination initiatives.

Menon joined NASA in 2014 as a flight surgeon, supporting astronauts living and working aboard the ISS. In 2018, he moved to SpaceX, where he established the company's medical programme, helped prepare for its first crewed missions and contributed to the development of Starship, the next-generation spacecraft designed for missions to the Moon, Mars and beyond.

He was selected as a NASA astronaut in December 2021 and began the agency's two-year astronaut training programme the following month.

Menon's wife, Anna Wilhelm, also has spaceflight experience, having flown aboard the SpaceX-operated Polaris Dawn private mission in September 2024, which lasted nearly five days.
(With PTI inputs)