Bell Nelson, who is on a visit to India, after meeting Rakesh Sharma had earlier said that the story of Rakesh Sharma lit up the room

Sharing on his social media X, NASA Administrator has stated, "It was a great honor to speak with students in Bengaluru today with Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to fly to space. His story lit up the room! To the Artemis Generation in India and beyond: Work hard, dream big, and reach for the stars. The universe is the limit."

Rakesh Sharma went on to become the first Indian citizen to reach outer space on April 2, 1984, when he flew aboard the Soviet rocket Soyuz T-11 launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome in the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic

He spent 7 days, 21 hours and 40 minutes in space and took India to become the 14th nation to travel to outer space. Sharma's work was mainly in the fields of bio-medicine and remote sensing

Sharma conducted several scientific studies and experiments, his work including remote sensing and bio-medicine. The crew even held a conference with officials from space. When the then PM of India, Indira Gandhi asked Sharma how India looked from outer space, Sharma said "Saare Jahaan Se Achcha"

Bill Nelson reached India on Tuesday, expressing his enthusiasm for a week of meetings and events aimed at strengthening the partnership between NASA and ISRO

Nelson's visit to India will fulfil a commitment as part of the US and India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology initiated by President Joe Biden