India

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has disclosed the four Indian astronauts that will fly to low-Earth orbit as part of the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Gaganyaan mission, which will be the first crewed Indian space mission. The Gaganyaan mission envisages the demonstration of Indian human spaceflight capability by launching a crew of 3 members to an orbit of 400 km for a 3-day mission and bringing them back safely to earth by landing in Indian sea waters. The Prime Minister made the announcement while visiting the Vikram Sarabhai Space Center in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has successfully launched the XPOSAT Satellite into an Eastward low inclination orbit on January 01, 2024, aboard its PSLV-C58 carrier. The mission will study various dynamics of bright astronomical X-ray sources in extreme conditions, the structure and geometry of the magnetic field of neutron stars, and develop an understanding of galactic black hole binary sources. The mission will also study and confirm the production of X-rays.

The Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA) announced on the 20th of December that they are welcoming the introduction of the Telecom Bill in the Indian Parliament. They have emphasised that the chapter on spectrum assignment for space-based services is a major step forward in recognising and leveraging the full potential of satellite communications to foster innovation, bring increased connectivity to India’s citizens and advance the country’s digital transformation. 

ICEYE, a Finnish microsatellite manufacturer announced on the 26th of October a partnership with Suhora Technologies, an Indian software and geospatial intelligence company. The partnership will allow Suhora access to ICEYE’s satellite imagery of any location on the planet. It will play a role in providing Suhora’s users with advanced monitoring and analytical geospatial solutions. 

The fifth episode of this special series of Space Cafe Black Ops with Dr. Namrata Goswami as resident guest is focused on India. This episode is part of a seven-series focused on the geopolitics of space. India: A Strategy of a Leading Power. The fifth episode of this special series of Space Café Black Ops with Dr. Namrata Goswami as a resident guest is focused on India. This episode is part of a seven-series focused on the geopolitics of space. 

In the upcoming fifth episode of our webinar series, "Black Ops," we delve into a pivotal discussion that promises to be nothing short of compelling. Under the spotlight, we welcome our esteemed guest speaker, Namrata Goswami, an independent scholar teaching and researching space policy, geopolitics and great power competition. Titled "India: A Strategy of a Leading Power," this episode promises an engaging exploration of India's evolving role on the global stage.

Switzerland representatives place second and third at the 9th edition of the prestigious European Rover Challenge space robotics competition. After intense competition on the world’s largest artificial Marsyard, team AGH Space Systems from Poland emerged as the best robotic team, meeting the rigorous demands of the jury. In addition, participants underwent a certification process confirming their knowledge and skills for the first time in competition history.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) India Private Limited announced on the 13th of September that it has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) to support space-tech innovations through cloud computing. 

The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Aditya-L1 solar observatory was successfully launched on the 2nd of September. It will be the first Indian satellite mission to study the Sun. It has seven instruments which will be used to investigate open questions about our dynamic star. Four instruments will view the Sun directly.

The India Space Research Organization (ISRO) has released lunar images from the Chandrayaan-3 mission as the spacecraft successfully completed its Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI). The spacecraft performed the insertion by retro-burning at its closest point to Moon (Perilune) for 1835 seconds, starting at 19:12 Hrs (IST). The maneuver resulted in an orbit of 164 km x 18074 km, as the research organization intended.