Reliance Jio plans to deploy 1,600 low-Earth orbit satellites offering up to 5 Tbps capacity, with 20-22 ground stations to provide broadband and mobile satellite services across India
Bengaluru-based Space start-up Galaxeye has lost contact with its satellite Mission Drishti, the world's first OptoSAR satellite, which was launched in May, and the likelihood of recovery currently appears low. According to the company, the connection was lost after the satellite encountered an anomaly following a geomagnetic solar storm. "Initial root cause analysis indicates that radiation effects associated with the event likely impacted a critical onboard system. Communication with the spacecraft subsequently became intermittent and was eventually lost," said Galaxeye. The satellite integrated electro-optical (EO) and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors into a single operational platform. While EO sensors capture high-resolution images during sunlight and clear skies, SAR sensors provide all-weather and all-time images, using radar pulses. Mission Drishti successfully established communication and completed a major portion of its planned Launch and Early Orbit Phase (LEOP).
Satellite manufacturing and launch alliance aims to build sovereign space ecosystem
India's draft spectrum rules move satellite reforms forward, but low earth orbit operators such as Starlink, OneWeb and Jio-SES still await security clearance and separate regulations
Here are the news in brief from defence sector as featured in Blueprint's June 2026 edition
GalaxEye founder Suyash Singh and his co-founders spent five years building Drishti, a satellite that sees through clouds even at night, and which was launched earlier this month on a SpaceX rocket
India's plans for satellite-to-smartphone connectivity face a reality check, with Apple and Google reportedly flagging hardware constraints, spectrum policy challenges, and the need for globally align
Starlink's India entry faces delays over security clearance, FDI approval, and spectrum rules, even as the satellite broadband market gathers momentum
The partnership will see Pixxel build and operate the Pathfinder satellite, while Sarvam provides the AI backbone, enabling real-time data processing in orbit using hyperspectral imaging and GPUs
Mission Drishti to capture imagery in all weather conditions, day and night
The company's PEARL-1A and PEARL-1B satellites entered their intended orbits and will conduct on-orbit missions for five years, it said
The e-commerce giant has been trying for years to break into satellite services to gain new sources of growth beyond its enormous retail and cloud-computing businesses
Globalstar's shares have almost quadrupled in the past year, giving the company a market value of about $9.4 billion
The US has listed India's preference for use of domestic satellites for direct-to-home (DTH) television services and localised shutdown of internet as a barrier to foreign trade. The 2026 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers released by the office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), also flagged that since 2021 American firms have been subject to increasing number of takedown requests for content and user accounts related to issues that appear "politically motivated". The report noted that localised internet shutdowns restrict access to information and services, disrupting commercial operations, and thereby undermining a free and open internet and impeding trade in the digital economy. "The United States continues to monitor the impact of these events on US trade and investment, including services exports," according to the report released on Tuesday. On satellite services, the report said the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting maintains a preference fo
How ready is India for space warfare
Discussions between government bodies and startups are in advanced stages and the private companies are aiming to launch their first test satellite in the first half of this year
NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), the commercial arm of the Department of Space, will resell the products of Bengaluru-based private space technology company GalaxEye under an agreement signed by the two entities, officials said on Saturday. The products include advanced satellite imagery solutions, such as SyncFused OptoSAR data products, which are designed to deliver insights across critical sectors, including agriculture, disaster management, and natural resource management. "Collaborating with NSIL allows us to bring advanced Earth observation capabilities to a wider set of users while contributing to India's strategic and developmental priorities," Suyash Singh, co-founder and CEO of GalaxEye Space. According to officials, the agreement made GalaxEye the first private Indian satellite operator to formally collaborate with NSIL under a data reseller partnership agreement. "Beyond commercial impact, the reseller agreement is a milestone in India's space policy, where government bod
Redeployable technology will support both military and civilian roles, from strategic surveillance to disaster monitoring
Astrome, Azista and Dhruva Space to receive ₹5 crore each under IN-SPACe's SBaaS initiative to develop indigenous small satellite bus platforms for hosted payload services
Samsung's Galaxy S26 lineup may support satellite texting and emergency SOS in select regions, similar to Google Pixels and Apple iPhones