Indian Vyomanauts undergoing Hydrolab training at Star City in Moscow Oblast, Russia

India is building its own astronaut training hub, Gaganyaan Nivas, at Sriharikota to ensure future astronauts no longer need to train abroad, The Print reported.

The facility will replicate NASA-style simulators, support diverse professionals beyond military pilots, and prepare crews for India’s maiden human spaceflight in 2027 and subsequent missions.

India’s human spaceflight ambitions are entering a new phase with the establishment of Gaganyaan Nivas. The facility is being set up at Sriharikota to provide complete astronaut training within India, eliminating the need for future batches to travel to Russia or the United States as the first group of astronaut designates did.

The tender for the facility has been floated under EPC Mode-II. This means ISRO will provide the architectural planning and design, while the contractor will handle construction and electrical work. The tender is valued at over ₹26 crore, reflecting the scale of investment in building indigenous astronaut training infrastructure.

Officials confirmed that India is preparing to send at least two astronauts to space by 2027 under the maiden Gaganyaan mission. Beyond this, ISRO intends to extend its human spaceflight expertise with more regular missions, supported by the new training centre and isolation facility.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced last year the creation of an astronaut pool. This pool will expand beyond test pilots from the Indian Air Force or armed forces officers, to include professionals from diverse fields such as teachers, scientists, and medical experts. The aim is to ensure that future missions can address multiple facets of space exploration.

Officials highlighted the importance of including microbiologists, medical doctors, and botanists in astronaut training. These professionals will be able to conduct experiments and research in space, particularly as India moves towards establishing its own Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS). The BAS will provide a platform for long-duration missions and scientific research in orbit.

The Gaganyaan Nivas will also include a crew isolation facility. This is critical for acclimatising astronauts to the confined and controlled environments they will face during missions.

The facility will be modelled on NASA’s Mission Simulation and Training Facility (MSTF), which uses simulators to replicate different aspects of space travel. ISRO plans to start with a basic facility and gradually add more advanced simulators and systems.

India’s first batch of astronaut designates—Prasanth Nair, Shubhanshu Shukla, Angad Pratap, and Ajit Krishnan—trained abroad. The new facility ensures that future astronauts will be fully trained domestically, strengthening India’s self-reliance in human spaceflight.

Complementary infrastructure has already been established at Sriharikota, including the Orbital Module Preparation Facility (OMPF), which integrates and tests the crew and service modules before launch. 

Human-rating modifications to the Second Launch Pad and advanced propulsion testing have also been completed. These developments, combined with Gaganyaan Nivas, form a comprehensive ecosystem for India’s human spaceflight program.

The facility represents a significant step in India’s journey towards becoming the fourth nation capable of independently sending humans into orbit. It also aligns with the broader vision of sustained human presence in space through the BAS.

Agencies