Isro's 100th mission jinxed? Satellite faces glitch after launch to orbit

Isro's NVS-02 satellite faced a setback as its thrusters failed to activate after launch. The glitch prevented the satellite from reaching the desired orbit

The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) faced a setback after the thrusters of the NVS-02 navigational satellite, launched as the agency's 100th mission, failed to ignite as engineers attempted to place the satellite in its intended orbit.

 

The NVS-02, launched aboard GSLV-Mk 2 rocket, is India's 100th launch and very crucial for the country’s Indigenous space-based navigation system. This satellite was launched from Shriharikota spaceport on January 29, 2025.

What went wrong with the NVS-02 satellite?

After the successful launch, the NVS-02 satellite successfully entered a geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO). Before placing the satellite in its final position, an elliptical path was used as a transition phase. 

 

Unfortunately, the satellite which was supposed to progress towards its intended orbit got stuck in GTO as its thrusters failed to fire.

 

According to an open-source space app, specialising in situational awareness, the NVS-02 satellite has remained in nearly the same position since January 29.

 

It put Isro's plan into a complicated situation and hampered the efforts of the agency in trying to conduct a series of orbit-raising manoeuvres using the satellite's onboard engines. Ultimately, placing it at 111.75 degrees east over India. 

 

The location of the NVS-02 was confirmed by the application on January 31 tracking over the Indian Ocean between 14:31 and 15:32 UTC from Australia. 

 

Navigation satellites like the NVS-02 need a near-circular orbit to operate optimally. However, with the liquid apogee motor (LAM) unable to fire due to the valve malfunction, Isro now faces a significant challenge in reaching the required orbit.

 

The valve malfunction is the reason why the liquid apogee motor (LAM) failed to fire and this made the mission too complicated as Isro now faced the challenge of reaching the required orbit.

What Isro said about the setback?

According to Isro, the fire thrusters for orbit raising did not open that led to the seatback and said, “Subsequent to the launch, the solar panels on board the satellite were successfully deployed and power generation is nominal. Communication with the ground station has been established. But the orbit raising operations towards positioning the satellite to the designated orbital slot could not be carried out as the valves for admitting the oxidizer to fire the thrusters for orbit raising did not open.”

What is Isro's plan B?

Engineers at Isro are now looking for some other strategies to use the satellite in its current elliptical orbit. The final decision is yet to come and Isro might repurpose the mission to maximize the utility of the satellite despite the propulsion failure. 

 

"The satellite systems are healthy and the satellite is currently in elliptical orbit. Alternative mission strategies for utilising the satellite for navigation in an elliptical orbit are being worked out," said Isro.

What is the NVS-02 satellite?

NVS-02, or Navigation Satellite-02 is a second satellite built as part of the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC), a regional navigation system aimed to provide accurate Position, Velocity and Timing (PVT) service to users in India and for regions up to 1,500 km beyond its borders.

 

India realised the need for its NavIC after the Kargil War in 1999 when India had to rely on foreign navigation systems as India was denied access to higher-quality GPS data. This triggered Indian then-PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee who pushed to create India's own indigenous system for India's strategic independence.

 

Isro has launched 11 NavIC satellites since 2013 and half of them faced technical glitches and now NVS-02 also faces a serious malfunction.

 

The 2,250 kg satellite was launched to offer two key services; Standard Positioning Service (SPS) for civilian users and Restricted Service (RS) for government and military applications. Once successful, NVS-02 could provide location accuracy of up to 20 metres and timing accuracy of up to 40 nanoseconds.