Space & Missiles

NEW DELHI, July 27: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said here today that the 30th July “NISAR” launch from Sriharikota will upscale ISRO’s international collaborations.

Briefing the media, the Minister for Science and Technology disclosed that the much-anticipated launch of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite mission is scheduled for July 30, 2025, at 17:40 hrs from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. As the first joint Earth observation mission between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the United States’ National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the event marks a defining moment in the journey of Indo-US space cooperation aa also in ISRO’s overall international collaborations, he said. The mission will be launched aboard India’s GSLV-F16 rocket.

Dr. Jitendra Singh, who has been monitoring the mission closely, said the launch reflects the maturing of strategic scientific partnerships and India’s emergence as a credible global player in advanced Earth observation systems. While expressing his wish to be physically present in Sriharikota to witness the historic event, the Minister acknowledged that the ongoing Parliament session may hold him back in Delhi.

“This mission is not just about a satellite launch—it is a moment that symbolises what two democracies committed to science and global welfare can achieve together. NISAR will not only serve India and the United States but will also provide critical data for countries around the world, especially in areas like disaster management, agriculture, and climate monitoring,” said Dr. Jitendra Singh.

Dr Jitendra Singh further noted that this mission lives up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of India becoming a ‘Vishwa Bandhu’—a global partner that contributes to the collective good of humanity.

The NISAR mission combines the technological expertise of both agencies. NASA has contributed the L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), a high-rate telecommunication subsystem, GPS receivers, and a deployable 12-meter unfurlable antenna. ISRO, on its part, has provided the S-Band SAR payload, the spacecraft bus to accommodate both payloads, the GSLV-F16 launch vehicle, and all associated launch services. The satellite weighs 2,392 kg and will be placed in a sun-synchronous orbit, offering repeat imaging of the entire Earth’s land and ice surfaces every 12 days.

From an applications standpoint, Dr. Jitendra Singh highlighted that NISAR’s capabilities extend well beyond traditional Earth observation. “It will allow continuous monitoring of ecosystem disturbances and help assess natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and landslides. It will track even subtle changes in the Earth’s crust and surface movement. Importantly, the satellite’s data will also be used for sea ice classification, ship detection, shoreline monitoring, storm tracking, crop mapping, and changes in soil moisture—all of which are vital for governments, researchers, and disaster management agencies,” he said.

A key feature of the mission is that all data generated by NISAR will be made freely accessible within one to two days of observation, and in near real-time in case of emergencies. This democratization of data is expected to support global scientific research and decision-making, especially for developing countries that may not have access to similar capabilities.

Notably, the NISAR mission is the first time a GSLV rocket is being used to place a satellite in sun-synchronous polar orbit, signalling ISRO’s growing technical sophistication in supporting diverse space missions. The dual radar payload aboard NISAR will employ SweepSAR technology for high-resolution, all-weather, day-and-night imaging of the Earth’s surface with a wide swath of 242 kilometres.

Dr. Jitendra Singh also underlined the importance of Earth observation missions in the context of climate resilience and sustainable development. “Missions like NISAR are no longer confined to scientific curiosity—they are instrumental in planning, risk assessment, and policy intervention. As climate change impacts intensify, timely and accurate data from satellites like NISAR will be indispensable for governments to act proactively,” he said.

While the mission has seen a long gestation period of over a decade and a joint investment exceeding $1.5 billion, the payoff in terms of global utility and technological advancement is expected to be transformative. The launch of NISAR is being closely watched by space agencies, environmental researchers, and policymakers worldwide.

As the countdown to July 30 begins, Dr. Jitendra Singh reiterated that India’s space programme under the guidance of Prime Minister Modi is steadily transitioning from traditional utility-based missions to those that position the country as a knowledge contributor to the global commons. “NISAR is not just a satellite; it is India’s scientific handshake with the world,” he said.

Space cooperative documents have been signed with 61 countries and five multilateral bodies. The major areas of collaborations are satellite remote sensing, satellite navigation, satellite communication, space science and planetary exploration and capacity building.

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is already working with the space agency of USA (NASA) for realizing a joint satellite mission, named ‘NISAR (NASA ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar)’ which is in the advanced stages of realization. ISRO is working with CNES (French National Space Agency) for realizing a joint satellite mission named ‘TRISHNA (Thermal Infrared Imaging Satellite for High Resolution Natural Resource Assessment)’, which is in the initial stages. ISRO and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) have carried out a feasibility study to realize a joint lunar polar exploration mission. ISRO also collaborated with NASA and Axiom Space for sending its astronaut to the International Space Station.

The details of support given to private sector to launch large scale missions in space is as detailed below:

The space sector is liberalized to allow Non-Governmental Entities (NGEs) to engage in full space activities.

The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) is established to promote, enable, authorize and supervise the activities of NGEs.

The Indian Space Policy, 2023 is formulated along with Norms, Guidelines & Procedures (NGP) and FDI policy to ensure regulatory clarity and foster a thriving space ecosystem.

Various schemes were introduced like Technology Adoption Fund, Venture Capital Fund for Space sector, Seed Fund Scheme, Pricing Support, Mentorship and Technical Labs to support start-ups and NGEs in Space Sector, signed 79 MoUs with NGEs and issued 77 authorizations as of 31.03.2025.

Announcement of Opportunity was made for making available Indian Orbital Resources to the NGEs in which 1 entity is selected as successful bidder.

IN-SPACe has facilitated 2 successful sub-orbital flights from Indian Space startups in November, 2022 and May, 2024 respectively. In addition to this, 6 NGEs have launched 14 satellites into orbit, demonstrating their capabilities.

As part of approval received by the Government for Gaganyaan Follow-on Missions leading to Precursor for Bhartiya Space Station (BAS) – Revision in Gaganyaan Programme on 9th October 2024, the integrated schedule includes the following:

Gaganyaan missions comprising of three uncrewed missions and one crewed mission

Precursor missions for BAS comprising of one crewed mission, International Space Station (ISS) docking mission, BAS-1 mission and BAS-1 docking mission

The current status and key milestones achieved in the Gaganyaan programme, are as follows:

New Developments:

Human Rated Launch Vehicle (HLVM3): Development and ground testing completed.

Orbital Module: Propulsion systems for Crew Module and Service Module developed and tested. Environmental Control & Life Support System (ECLSS) engineering model realized.

Crew Escape System (CES): 5 types of motors developed and static tested.

Infrastructure established:Orbital Module Preparation Facility, Gaganyaan Control Centre, Gaganyaan Control facility, Crew training facility, Second Launch pad modifications.

Precursor Missions: A Test Vehicle developed for validating CES and flight tested in TV-D1. Activities progressing for TV-D2 and IADT-01.

Flight Operations and Communication Network: Ground network configuration finalized. IDRSS-1 feeder stations and terrestrial links established.

Crew Recovery Operations: Recovery assets finalized. Recovery Plan worked out.

First Uncrewed Mission (G1): C32-G stage and CES motors realized. HS200 Motors and CES Fore end up to Crew Module Jettisoning Motor stacked. Crew Module and Service module structure realized. Crew Module Phase-1 checks completed.

Towards BAS-1 mission

Major activities carried out including preliminary configuration and preliminary accommodation studies for various systems.

Overall system engineering of BAS-01 module and detailed engineering of various identified subsystems have commenced.

Hardware specification identification and interface requirements finalization are being carried out.

Configuration of various systems are being finalized.

Indigenous technologies can be used for space exploration in the domain of several remote sensing and in – situ payloads. For remote sensing, matured indigenous technologies exist for spectrometers, cameras, telescopes, seismometers, as well as thermal probes. Such instruments have been flown in missions like AstroSat, Chandrayaan 1,2,3, Mars Mission, Aditya – L1, as well as XpoSat mission.

ISRO has achieved significant achievements in the use of indigenous technologies for space exploration missions. Some of the key missions wherein the indigenous technologies are recently developed are- docking and rendezvous in Spadex mission, lander and rover in Chandrayaan-3 mission, critical payloads in Aditya-L1 mission, satellite subsystems realized for earth observation, communication and navigation satellites, etc.

While key technologies and some of the parts/ materials/ components are being realized within the country, few of the Electrical, Electronics & Electro-Mechanical (EEE) components, carbon fibres, solar cells. Detectors, Travelling Wave Tube Amplifier (TWTAs), etc., are being imported.

Indian Space programme is self-reliant to a large extent towards realizing satellites and launch vehicles. As on today, the Department is not exporting any aerospace product at any level.

As mentioned above, significant amount of progress has been achieved in terms of development of indigenous technologies. However, certain parts/ materials/ components are being imported for realization of the satellite systems. As on today, ISRO has achieved capabilities in building expendable launch vehicles which can launch up to 4.2 tonne to Geo-Transfer Orbit (GTO). ISRO has also achieved self-reliance in building satellites for various applications like remote sensing, communication and navigation along with other scientific missions to the moon and Mars. With regard to emerging space technologies, ISRO has already taken up development of a partially reusable launch vehicle towards low-cost access to space and for which a LOX-Methane propulsion system is being developed by ISRO. During the past two years, ISRO conducted landing experiments of a winged body vehicle which performed autonomous runway landing. Further, an orbital flight of the winged body vehicle is also planned which will perform re-entry from an orbit and land on a runway autonomously.

This information was given by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, MoS Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Atomic Energy and Department of Space, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.