'It is not economical to operate GSLV-Mk II due to its cost and complexity. Future launches to be managed with LVM3.'
'An instruction came from somebody in Delhi saying, "don't go with the launch".'
ISRO has successfully launched EOS-05, India's first geo-imaging satellite, into a precise sub-geosynchronous transfer orbit using a GSLV rocket. This 2,367 kg satellite, the heaviest ever carried by a GSLV, will provide real-time imagery for applications in agriculture and disaster management from an altitude of 36,000 km.
It is about proving that the agency can still deliver when the stakes are high.
'I don't think the government will sacrifice such a fine institution for monetary gains.'
A rocket designed and developed by ISRO is being transferred to industry for production.
Nine ISRO associations want to know whether this is simply an effort to expand India's industrial capacity or part of a larger policy under which ISRO itself will eventually withdraw from rocket manufacturing.
Buying a mature rocket technology gives companies the designs and hardware know-how, but not necessarily the decades of engineering wisdom needed to make it work.
'He didn't touch upon the core questions raised by the nine employee associations.'
Nine employee associations at ISRO have written to Chairperson V Narayanan, seeking official clarification on the proposed transfer of manufacturing and operational functions to private entities. They raised concerns about ISRO's future role, employee consequences, and recruitment, following comments by IN-SPACe chairperson Pawan Goenka regarding ISRO's eventual exit from launch vehicle manufacturing.
Their message is blunt: Public scientific wealth should not be transferred at what they describe as 'throwaway prices'.capability, recruitment, promotional avenues and the voice of its employees.
The larger question raised by the associations is simple: If ISRO is no longer to manufacture launch vehicles, what will happen to the institution's accumulated capabilities and the people who built them?
There is no answer to the question of how IN-SPACe invited EOIs for ISRO's mature rockets and whether it was based on any government policy decision.
A high-level committee investigating the failures of ISRO's PSLV rockets, which have impacted strategic satellite missions, has yet to release its report and recommendations, raising concerns about the future of the ageing launch vehicle.
The EoI comes at a time when ISRO is working to enhance LVM3's payload capacity to five tonnes in GTO and is also evaluating the procurement of a Russian semi-cryogenic engine for the vehicle's second stage.
ISRO stated that the disengagement of at least one contact -- in both the main and redundant paths -- of a connector led to the failure of NVS-02.
These upcoming launches carry added significance in light of setbacks suffered in recent years.
Based on the broadcast visuals, a rocket expert said the failure appeared similar to the anomaly seen during the PSLV-C61 mission.
ISRO is developing a third launch pad at Shriharikota to accommodate heavier satellites and next-generation launch vehicles. The new facility will support both crewed and uncrewed missions.
The heaviest communication satellite to be launched from the Indian soil onboard a new generation, homegrown 'Bahubali' rocket was successfully placed into the intended orbit on Sunday, the Indian Space Research Organisation said.
ISRO chairman S Somanath said the success gave the space agency "greater confidence," as the GSLV will be next deployed in the NISAR mission, a collaborative effort with the US' NASA.
ISRO has announced plans for seven launch missions by March, including the first uncrewed mission for the Gaganyaan project and demonstrations of new satellite technologies.
'A solid motor, once ignited, burns until the propellant is exhausted. It cannot simply stop mid-burn,' said a retired senior ISRO official. 'That is what makes this failure puzzling.' Venkatachari Jagannathan reports on the latest PSLV failure.
The imaging technology in Nisar can provide very high-resolution data on changes as small as one centimetre in size on the earth's surface.
ISRO chairman announces plans for nine major launches by the end of the fiscal year, including the Blue Bird Block2 communication satellite for the US in collaboration with NASA.
Weighing 6,100 kg, the communication satellite would be the heaviest payload to be placed into the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) in LVM3 launch history from Indian soil.
Indian Space Research Organisation 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.
The satellite, weighing about 4,410 kg will be the heaviest to be launched from the Indian soil and into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO), the space agency said. The satellite will travel onboard a LVM3-M5 rocket, dubbed as 'Bahubali' for its heavylift capability.
ISRO is set to launch its communication satellite CMS-03 from Sriharikota. The satellite, weighing 4,410 kg, will be the heaviest launched from Indian soil into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).
India and the US on Wednesday marked their maiden space collaboration with the successful flight of a GSLV rocket that placed an earth observation satellite, jointly developed by the two space agencies, in a precise orbit.
The Chandrayaan-2 mission has made the first-ever observation of the effects of the Sun's Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) on the Moon using its onboard scientific instruments. This observation would help understand the lunar exosphere and the impact of space weather on its surface.
ISRO to launch a 6,500 kg communication satellite built by the US, marking a significant milestone in the Indian space program after the successful launch of the NASA-ISRO NISAR mission.
The NASA-ISRO NISAR mission has entered its 90-day commissioning phase, involving rigorous checks and calibrations to prepare the satellite for Earth observation. Scientists highlight the collaborative benefits and technological advancements of the mission.
ISRO Chairman V Narayanan announces ambitious space program goals, including landing Indians on the Moon by 2040 and launching the 'Gaganyaan' mission in 2027. The agency is also working on a national space station and uncrewed missions.
The need for NavIC was cemented after India was denied access to crucial navigation data from global providers during the 1999 Kargil War.
Indian Space Research Organisation's second mission of the year to place an earth observation satellite by a GSLV rocket faced a setback as the mission could not be accomplished fully due to performance anomaly in the cryogenic stage of the rocket, the space agency said on Thursday.
At 6.23 am on 29.1.2025, the 50.9 metre tall and weighing 420.7 ton Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle-F15 (GSLV-F15) is slated to blast off from the second launch pad carrying the 2,250 kg NVS-02 navigation satellite.
The Indian Space Research Organisation will open 2025 scoring a century orbiting the country's navigation satellite 2,250 kg NVS-02 with its rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV)-F15.
The main focus of the all weather RISAT-1B satellite will be to observe the Indian land with its C-band synthetic aperture radar.
The Indian Space Research Organisation successfully launched its 100th mission on Wednesday, with a GSLV rocket carrying navigation satellite NVS-02.
The FAC found that the failure happened when the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle rocket's cryogenic engine was to kick in to take the rocket forward.
