Jahnavi Dangeti Set to Become First Indian Astronaut on Titans Space Mission 2029
- TPP
- Jun 26
- 3 min read
As India celebrated Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla’s historic journey to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard the Axiom-4 mission in June 2025, another Indian space milestone was quietly in the making. Jahnavi Dangeti, a 23-year-old space enthusiast from Andhra Pradesh’s Godavari district, is now poised to become the first Indian astronaut on the Titans Space Mission, scheduled for launch in 2029.
The announcement came directly from Titan Space Industries (TSI), a U.S.-based private space research and exploration agency, which confirmed her selection as part of their new Astronaut Candidate (ASCAN) cohort — the inaugural class of 2025. The mission, expected to be a significant leap in commercial orbital spaceflight, will be led by veteran NASA astronaut and retired U.S. Army Colonel William McArthur Jr., who now serves as Chief Astronaut at Titans Space.
Sharing the news on social media, Jahnavi wrote:
“I’m incredibly honoured and excited to announce that I have been officially selected as an Astronaut Candidate (ASCAN) for Titans Space – Inaugural Class of 2025.”
Mission Overview: A Brief but Bold Leap into Orbit
The Titans 2029 space mission is designed to last approximately five hours, during which the spacecraft will orbit the Earth twice, allowing the crew to witness two sunrises and two sunsets — all within a single mission. What makes this mission especially groundbreaking is the provision of nearly three hours of continuous zero gravity, a rare and valuable condition for conducting advanced scientific investigations, human spaceflight studies, and aerospace technology development.
Zero gravity (or microgravity) refers to the condition in space where the gravitational forces are extremely weak, allowing objects and astronauts to float — an environment ideal for medical and scientific research that cannot be replicated on Earth.
Who is Jahnavi Dangeti?
Jahnavi’s remarkable journey into space science and aerospace began early and has been marked by exceptional academic and practical achievements. She is currently a student of Electronics and Communication Engineering at Lovely Professional University, Punjab — a foundation that has supported her interdisciplinary knowledge spanning engineering, astronomy, and aerospace systems.
Born to Padmasri and Srinivas, residents of Kuwait, Jahnavi completed her schooling in the Godavari region of Andhra Pradesh. Over the years, she has evolved into a dynamic advocate for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education, particularly for young women in India and across the globe.
Recommended Stories
Training, Global Exposure, and Scientific Contributions
In 2022, Jahnavi made international headlines when she became the youngest foreign analogue astronaut and the first Indian selected by the Analogue Astronaut Training Centre (AATC) in Kraków, Poland.
Analogue astronauts are individuals trained in Earth-based simulations of space missions, often in extreme environments, to mimic the physical and psychological conditions of space. These simulations are essential for mission planning, human factors research, and space health readiness.
She also participated in the NASA-backed International Astronomical Search Collaboration (IASC), where she was involved in asteroid detection, working with data from the Pan-STARRS telescope in Hawaii — a world-class facility for planetary defense and asteroid tracking.
Jahnavi holds the distinction of being the first Indian graduate of NASA’s International Air and Space Program (IASP), a rigorous five-day program conducted at the Kennedy Space Center. The training included hands-on sessions in rocket design, space systems engineering, astronaut leadership skills, and simulation-based problem-solving, preparing candidates for real-world space missions.
Her growing list of accolades includes:
People’s Choice Award at the NASA Space Apps Challenge, a global hackathon aimed at solving Earth and space-related challenges using open data from NASA.
Young Achiever Award during ISRO’s World Space Week, an international celebration of science and space technology coordinated by the Indian Space Research Organisation.
A Role Model for the Next Generation
Jahnavi Dangeti’s selection as an astronaut candidate for the 2029 orbital mission marks a historic achievement not just for India, but for global representation in space exploration. Her story symbolizes the rise of a new generation of Indian space professionals who are contributing on a global scale and shaping the future of space science and technology.
The Titans 2029 mission, though brief in duration, offers an incredibly rich platform for space medicine, aerospace innovation, and education outreach — and Jahnavi will carry not just scientific equipment but the aspirations of a billion Indians with her into orbit.
Click for Daily Quotes:
Stay updated with the latest news by joining our Telegram channel – The PRESS Pad , and follow us on Instagram and X.
Comments