If successful, India will become the fourth country to achieve this feat.
India has launched its first space docking mission on an Indian-made rocket in a bid to become the fourth country to achieve the advanced technological feat.
The mission, called the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX), lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Andhra Pradesh state at 16:30 GMT on Monday aboard the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) PSLV rocket.
After approximately 15 minutes, the mission director called the launch a success after the PSLV-C60 rocket reached an altitude of about 470 km (292 miles).
The mission is seen as essential to future space efforts, including satellite service and operation of the country’s planned space station. Space docking technology is essential when multiple rocket launches are required to achieve common mission objectives.
The Indian mission involves placing two small spacecraft, each weighing about 220 kg (485 pounds), into a 470 km circular orbit. It will also demonstrate electrical power transfer between docked spacecraft, a vital capability for applications such as space robotics, composite spacecraft control and post-detach payload operations.
Each satellite carries advanced payloads, including an imaging system and a radiation monitoring device designed to measure electron and proton radiation levels in space, providing critical data for future human spaceflight missions.
ISRO Chairman S Somanath said the actual testing of the docking technology could be done in about a week and indicated a nominal date around January 7. “The rocket has put the satellites into the correct orbit,” he said.
A successful demonstration would put India alongside the United States, Russia and China as the only countries to have developed and tested the capability.
In a first for India, the rocket and satellites were integrated and tested at a private company called Ananth Technologies, rather than a government body.
“The emergence of this technology is not only about the ability to join a rare group of countries that possess it, but also opens up the market for ISRO to be the launch partner for various global missions that need docking equipment or assembly in space,” said. astrophysicist Somak Raychaudhary of Ashoka University.
The fourth stage of the PSLV, which usually turns into space junk, has been converted into an active unmanned space laboratory. The final stage of the rocket has been repurposed to become an orbital laboratory and will be used for various experiments.
“The PSLV Orbital Experiment Module (POEM) is a practical solution deployed by ISRO that allows Indian start-ups, academic institutions and research organizations to test their space technologies without having to launch entire satellites. By making this platform accessible, we are reducing barriers to entry and enabling a wider range of entities to contribute to the space sector,” said Pawan Goenka, chairman of India’s space regulatory body.
The mission is “vital to India’s future space ambitions,” Jitendra Singh, the country’s science and technology minister, said in a statement ahead of the launch. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced plans last year to send a man to the moon by 2040.
The world’s most populous nation has a relatively modest aerospace program that is fast approaching the milestones set by global space powers.
In August 2023, India became only the fourth nation to land an unmanned spacecraft on the Moon after Russia, the US and China.
