Page 2 - Isro Projects

ISRO successfully tests boot-strap mode start on CE20 cryogenic engine

The ISRO on Wednesday announced that it has successfully demonstrated the boot-strap mode start test of the CE20 Cryogenic engine, which powers the upper stage of the Launch Vehicle Mark -3 (LVM3) rocket. The test was conducted for 10 second under vacuum conditions at the High-Altitude Test (HAT) facility at ISRO Propulsion Complex, Mahendragiri on November 7, it said. According to ISRO, the CE20 cryogenic engine is already qualified for operation at thrust levels between 19 and 22 tonnes with a single start in flight and is cleared for use in the Gaganyaan missions. Under normal conditions, the engine ignition begins under tank head pressure, followed by a turbopump start up using a stored gas start-up system, the space agency said. For future missions, multiple in-flight restarts of the CE20 engine will be required for mission flexibility, towards multi-orbit missions. With the current configuration, each restart requires an additional start-up gas bottle and associated systems,

India fast emerging preferred destination in space sector: Jitendra Singh

India is fast emerging as a preferred global destination for space sector engagement and investment, Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said on Tuesday. Inaugurating the India International Space Conclave, Singh said India's space sector was undergoing a decisive transformation and the government's reforms have created an enabling ecosystem where talent, technology and investment can converge to shape the future of the space economy. Reforms introduced since 2019, including opening the sector to private players, establishing IN-SPACe as a single-window regulatory body and releasing the space policy in 2023, have helped India expand its role in the global space landscape, the minister said. He said the unlocking of the space sector has brought start-ups, students, industry and citizens into what was once a closed domain. Singh said that India's most significant contribution has been the application of space technology for governance and citizen welfare. Nearly 70 per ce

Isro to triple spacecraft output, launch Chandrayaan-4 in 2028: Chairman

ISRO is gearing up for one of its busiest times with seven more launches planned this financial year, even as India's first human spaceflight remains scheduled for 2027, its chairman V Narayanan said. In an interview with PTI, he said ISRO is preparing for a phase of rapid scaling in science, technology and industry capacity. Narayanan said ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) is targeting seven more launches before the end of the current financial year, including a commercial communication satellite, and multiple PSLV and GSLV missions. A milestone will be the launch of the first PSLV manufactured entirely by the Indian industry. The ISRO chief said the government has approved the Chandrayaan-4 mission, designed as a lunar sample-return mission and it will be India's most complex lunar endeavour yet. "We are targeting 2028 for Chandrayaan-4," he said. Another key mission is LUPEX, the joint lunar polar exploration programme with JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency). IS

Isro collects Chandrayaan-2 data to aid study of Moon's polar regions

ISRO on Saturday said it has collected advanced data from the Chandrayaan-2 lunar orbiter to gain a deeper understanding of the Moon's polar regions, including parameters describing the physical and dielectric properties of its surface. This is India's major value addition towards future global exploration of the Moon, it said. According to an ISRO statement, the Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter has been in orbit around the Moon since 2019 and has been providing high-quality data. One of the payloads, the Dual Frequency Synthetic Aperture Radar (DFSAR), is the first instrument that has mapped the Moon using the L-band in full-polarimetric mode and in the highest resolution (25m/pixel). This advanced radar mode sends and receives signals in both vertical and horizontal directions, making it ideal for studying surface properties, it said. The space agency said that since its launch, about 1,400 radar datasets have been collected and processed to create polarimetric mosaics of the north and sou

Isro scripts history with launch of heaviest communications satellite

ISRO's LVM3-M5 rocket lifted off from Sriharikota with CMS-03, a 4,410-kg satellite aimed at boosting the Indian Navy's communications and maritime surveillance network

Explainer: What is Isro's 'Bahubali' and what is it carrying to space?

Isro prepares for a landmark launch as its most powerful rocket gears up to lift the nation's heaviest communication satellite yet

300+ startups working on satellite manufacture, launch services: Isro chief

Isro chairman V Narayanan credits IN-SPACe for integrating startups into India's space ecosystem; says human lunar mission target set for 2040

Govt plans 'bodyguard' satellites after risky near-miss in orbit

The government wants to develop so-called bodyguard satellites to identify and counter threats to orbiting spacecraft

Isro to send half-humanoid 'Vyommitra' into space this Dec: V Narayanan

V Narayanan said, 'By the first quarter of 2027, we aim to send our own 'Gaganyatri' to space and bring it back safely'

India, US begin new era of space cooperation with Moon and Mars missions

India and the US signalled the beginning of a new phase of space partnership at a special event hosted by the Embassy of India in Washington DC, with officials and astronauts highlighting how decades of cooperation are now paving the way for missions to the Moon and Mars. An event, titled India-USA Space Collaboration: The Frontiers of a Futuristic Partnership, was held at India House on Monday and celebrated recent milestones, including the joint NASAISRO NISAR satellite and the Axiom Mission-4, which carried Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla to the International Space Station. Ambassador of India to the United States, Vinay Kwatra, described the partnership as a dynamic platform for advancing scientific exploration, technology development and commercial cooperation. He said India's space programme has emerged as a global leader in cost-effective exploration, and joint efforts with the US could push the boundaries of human spaceflight in the decades ahead. Dr Karen St Germain, ..

Hindustan Aeronautics signs SSLV technology transfer deal with Isro, others

The SSLV Technology Transfer Agreement highlights the collective resolve of India's space ecosystem to strive towards a self-reliant India in space, and put India's space-faring capabilities globally

India's space startups team up to share skills and expertise, minimise risk

What stood out was the group's zero-cost bid. Though the government is offering up to ₹350 crore in financial support, these companies have opted to bear the entire investment themselves

Shubhanshu Shukla gets hero's welcome in Lucknow after historic space feat

Indian Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla returned to his hometown Lucknow on Monday to a rousing reception after becoming the first Indian to visit the International Space Station. Although he arrived in India from the US on August 17, he is visiting the Uttar Pradesh capital now after participating in multiple outreach events, including a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 18. Family members, including his parents Shambhu and Asha Shukla, wife Kamna, and son Kiash, were present at the airport to greet him. They were joined by cheering crowds waving the tricolour and chanting "Vande Mataram". Adding to the celebratory atmosphere, a troupe played drums and trumpets, while students from Shukla's alma mater, City Montessori School (CMS), came dressed in vibrant costumes representing space missions and celestial objects. CMS manager Geeta Gandhi Kingdon was among those personally welcoming the school's celebrated alumnus. From the airport, Shukla embarked on a

Isro developing 40-storey rocket to launch 75-tonne satellite: Narayanan

ISRO Chairman V Narayanan on Tuesday said the space agency has been working on a rocket as high as a 40-storey building to place 75,000 kg satellite in low earth orbit. Delivering the convocation address of Osmania University here, Narayanan said this year, the space agency has lined up with projects such as NAVIC (Navigation with India Constellation system) satellite and the N1 rocket, besides placing a 6,500 kg communication satellite of the USA into orbit using Indian rockets. "You know, what is the capacity of the rocket? The first launcher, (Dr APJ) Abdul Kalam ji, which he built was a 17 tonne lift-off mass, capable of placing 35 kg in low earth orbit. Today, we are conceiving a rocket to place 75,000 kg in low earth orbit. The rocket is of 40-storey building height," he said. ISRO has planned to launch Technology Demonstration Satellite (TDS) and GSAT-7R, a Indian military communication satellite, specifically designed for the Indian Navy to replace the existing GSAT-7 ...

Arunachal minister inaugurates Isro-backed space lab at Mechuka school

A state-of-the-art space laboratory was inaugurated by Arunachal Pradesh Education Minister Pasang Dorjee Sona at remote Mechuka in Shi-Yomi district. The lab at Mechuka Government Higher Secondary School, established in collaboration between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Muskaan Foundation, aims to provide students with hands-on experience in space science and technology, fostering curiosity, innovation, and scientific thinking among the youth, an official statement said on Friday. The facility has been named Pasang Wangchuk Sona ISRO Space Laboratory, in honour of the minister's father and in recognition of his lifelong belief in the transformative power of education, it said. "Today marks an emotional and proud moment for me as I inaugurated the 'Pasang Wangchuk Sona ISRO Space Laboratory' -- dedicated to my late father. This laboratory is not just an educational facility, it is a tribute to his unwavering belief in the power of education and curiosity. I hope

Shubhanshu Shukla returns Sunday after historic space mission, to meet PM

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla is set to return to India on Sunday after his historic visit to the International Space Station (ISS) and is eager to share his experiences with friends and colleagues back home as ISRO eyes its maiden human spaceflight in 2027. Shukla, who has been in the US, training for the Axiom-4 mission to ISS for the past one year, is expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and travel to his hometown Lucknow soon after. He is expected to be back in the capital to participate in the National Space Day celebrations on August 22-23. Shukla posted on Instagram a smiling photograph of himself sitting in an aeroplane, and said in its caption that he was filled with mixed emotions as he left the US and could not wait to return to India to share his experiences with everyone back home. "As I sit on the plane to come back to India, I have a mix of emotions running through my heart. I feel sad leaving a fantastic group of people behind who were my friends and family f

Shubhanshu calls his space mission start of India's second space orbit

Astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla on Friday described his journey to space as the beginning of India's "second orbit" with the aim to lead in the area of human spaceflight. Addressing a virtual press conference, Shukla and his co-travellers of the Axiom-4 mission to the International Space Station shared their experiences of living in microgravity and conducting experiments that would help humanity. "In a realm like space exploration, in decades of global collaboration, the moment in this mission that stood out for me was speaking to the prime minister of Bharat while the Indian flag floated behind me," Shukla said. He said that moment symbolised India's re-entry into the conversation, not as a spectator but as an equal participant. "After 41 years, a Bharatiya returned to space. But this time, it was not a solitary leap, it was the beginning of India's second orbit. And this time, we are ready, not just to fly but to lead," Shukla said. Shukla became the second Indian to travel to spac

NISAR launch among world's most precise, says Isro chief Narayanan

ISRO Chairman V Narayanan has said the successful launch of the NISAR satellite was one of the most precise launches in the world, and NASA was excited to see that India could successfully carry it out using the indigenously developed GSLV Mark vehicle. He was speaking to reporters on Thursday night at the international airport here, a day after ISRO successfully placed the NISAR (NASAISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) mission onboard a GSLV-F16 rocket from this spaceport. "They were so excited to understand that Indians could successfully launch using the indigenously developed GSLV marked vehicle--our own vehicle for placing the satellite into orbit. They were excited and extremely happy," he said in response to a query. According to Narayanan, it was one of the most precise launches in the world, with a five-stage rocket operating flawlessly at every stage, injecting the satellite into its precise orbit with a margin of just two to three kilometres. "It is an unimaginable achievemen

India-US space partnership takes off with successful NISAR launch

Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) is the costliest earth observation satellite till date, with an investment of $1.5 billion