The Union Cabinet, on Thursday, approved the creation of a third launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, with an investment of ₹3,985 crore, as announced by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
The project will involve extensive industry participation, leveraging ISRO’s experience in establishing previous launch pads. (File)(ISRO/X)
Speaking in Delhi, Ashwini Vaishnaw stated, as reported by ANI, “With a cost of ₹3985 Crores, the third launch pad has been sanctioned by the cabinet today. This will prove to be an important milestone for the country in space infrastructure. If you look at the first and second launch pads, this has much greater capacity than those two.”
Everything You Should Know About the New Launch Pad
As per a government statement cited by PTI, the project aims to develop launch infrastructure at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, to support ISRO's Next Generation Launch Vehicles (NGLV) and act as a backup for the second launch pad.
The statement further highlighted that the new launch pad will enhance ISRO's capacity for future Indian human spaceflight missions and is projected to be completed within four years.
The third launch pad will be equipped to accommodate both the Next Generation Launch Vehicle (NGLV) and Launch Vehicle Mark-3 (LVM3) with a semi-cryogenic stage, along with upgraded configurations of the NGLV, ensuring maximum flexibility.
The project will involve significant industry collaboration, drawing on ISRO’s expertise in building previous launch pads while optimising the use of existing launch complex facilities.
ISRO's SpaDeX Mission
On Thursday, ISRO successfully completed the docking of satellites as part of its Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX). The agency confirmed that the two satellites were successfully controlled as a single unit following the docking.
“India docked its name in space history! Good Morning India ISRO's SpaDeX mission accomplishes historic docking success. Proud to witness this moment!” ISRO said in a post on X.
India achieved a significant milestone by becoming the fourth nation, after the US, Russia, and China, to successfully perform satellite docking.
The SpaDeX mission, developed by ISRO, serves as a cost-effective technology demonstration, showcasing in-space docking using two small spacecraft launched aboard the PSLV rocket. This docking technology is vital for missions requiring multiple rocket launches to accomplish shared goals in space.
This successful experiment marks a critical step toward ISRO's future endeavors, including the Bharatiya Antariksh Station and the planned astronaut moon landing.
On January 12, ISRO conducted a trial where the two spacecraft approached within three meters of each other before being separated to a safe distance.
The SpaDeX mission was launched on December 30, 2024, aboard the PSLV C60 rocket from Sriharikota's Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The rocket carried two small satellites, SDX01 (Chaser) and SDX02 (Target), along with 24 payloads. Approximately 15 minutes after liftoff, the 220 kg spacecraft were successfully placed into a 475-km circular orbit as planned.
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