Space Technology

IN-SPACe starts Rs 500 cr tech adoption fund to boost India's space sector

The TAF will support the transition of innovative ideas from the drawing board to a market-ready stage

Global aerospace firms turn to India amid Western supply chain crisis

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Airbus, Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Rolls-Royce are expanding parts sourcing from India, driving growth in the country's emerging aerospace sector and pushing local firms to elevate their games, industry insiders say.

India, US call for space collaboration, launch new innovation bridge

Calling for ramping up collaboration in space exploration, including on long-duration human spaceflight missions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump hailed 2025 as a pioneering year for US-India civil space cooperation. The two leaders, who also launched INDUS Innovation bridge, held wide-ranging talks on Thursday (Friday IST) focussing on broadening the bilateral partnership, including in the fields of defence, energy, space and critical technology. Modi and Trump called for more collaboration in space exploration, including on long-duration human spaceflight missions, spaceflight safety and sharing of expertise and professional exchanges in emerging areas, including planetary protection, according to a joint statement issued after the discussions. The leaders committed to further commercial space collaboration through industry engagements in conventional and emerging areas, such as connectivity, advanced spaceflight, satellite and space launch systems, space .

Isro develops 10-tonne 'Vertical Planetary Mixer' for solid motors

ISRO on Friday said it has developed and realised the ten-tonne propellant mixer for solid motors. Solid propulsion plays a crucial role in Indian Space Transportation Systems and vertical mixer is one of the critical equipment in solid motor production, ISRO said in a statement. "Solid propellants are the backbone of rocket motors, and their production requires precise mixing of highly sensitive and hazardous ingredients," the statement read. The space agency said that towards increasing the production scale of solid motor segments, Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota in collaboration with Central Manufacturing Technology Institute (CMTI), Bengaluru has successfully designed and developed 10-tonne Vertical Planetary Mixers for processing the solid propellants. ISRO has termed it a significant technological marvel. It added that the 10-tonne vertical mixer is the world's largest solid propellant mixing equipment. The development involves collaboration with academia and ...

Space tech firm Digantara eyes $30 million revenue with US expansion

The Bengaluru-based startup plans to invest $10 million to $15 million over the next six to eight months to establish a spacecraft manufacturing and space optics production facility in Colorado

India to launch Chandrayaan-4 in 2027, aims to bring back moon rocks

The Chandrayaan-4 announcement comes alongside several other major projects including the Gaganyaan, India's first crewed spaceflight mission set for launch next year

In a first, 7 Indian space startups picked for Indo-US defence programme

Under the programme, they will work with the US Defense Innovation Unit, the Department of Defense and other government agencies on satellite observation, emerging space and defence technologies

Industries hold key to achieving India's Space Vision: Isro chief Somanath

ISRO Chairman S Somanath said on Friday that industries have a phenomenal role to play in achieving India's Space Vision 2047, rolled out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. ISRO chairman-designate V Narayanan also echoed the same view. In his pre-recorded inaugural speech, at the biennial National Aerospace Manufacturing Seminar (NAMS) 2025, Somanath said that the industries will face significant challenges as their collaboration with the space programme is going to increase substantially. One of the challenges would be the regular production of rockets, satellites and other systems required for the space programme and the other would be engineering, manufacturing and supplying items like new space crafts and systems, miniature electronics, large propulsion tanks and engines, he said. "They have to be produced in numbers to meet the tight schedules," he added. He said the task was a huge one as the strength of the space community in the public sector was not increasing ...

Toyota backs Japanese space startup Interstellar to mass-produce rockets

As part of the capital and business tie-up, Woven will appoint a director to IST's board and support rocket production by strengthening supply chains and corporate governance, IST said

India's space sector funding drops 55% in 2024 amid global downturn

The government has sought to stimulate the sector by approving a 10 billion rupee ($119 million) fund in October 2024 to support space startups and setting plans to expand India's share

Isro delays SpaDeX docking to Jan 9 for validation by ground simulations

ISRO on Monday said the docking experiment of SpaDeX satellites scheduled for January 7 is now postponed to January 9. The Bengaluru-based space agency said the docking process requires further validation through ground simulations based on an abort scenario identified on Monday. "The SpaDeX Docking scheduled on (January) 7th is now postponed to 9th. The docking process requires further validation through ground simulations based on an abort scenario identified today," ISRO said in a post on 'X'. ISRO had successfully launched the ambitious Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) mission on December 30. The PSLV C60 rocket carrying two small satellites, SDX01 (Chaser) and SDX02 (Target), along with 24 payloads, had lifted off from the first launchpad of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, and about 15 minutes after liftoff, the two small spacecraft weighing about 220 kg each were launched into a 475-km circular orbit as intended. According to ISRO, SpaDeX mission is a ...

Antony Blinken warns of Russia-North Korea cooperation in space technology

The remarks by Blinken came as North Korea fired a suspected hypersonic missile into the East Sea

Isro's SpaDeX satellites first to be built by industry on its own: Official

The launch of two satellites for the space docking experiment (SpaDeX) also marked a first for the industry, which built the two spacecraft on their own under guidance from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) engineers. The two satellites -- SDX01 (chaser) and SDX02 (target) -- each weighing 220 kg were integrated and tested by Ananth Technologies Limited (ATL), which has been associated with a number of ISRO projects for the past several years. "So far, large satellites have not been realised in the industry by themselves. This is the first time that the two satellites have been integrated and tested in the industry," said U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) Director M Shankaran after the two satellites were placed in a 476 km circular orbit by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C60) on Monday night. Shankaran described the launch of the two satellites a trailblazer for the industry. "We hope that this is going to be the first of the several such satellites done by the

Isro to launch historic PSLV-C60 SpaDex mission tonight; where to watch?

Showcasing India's spacecraft docking capabilities is crucial for advancing future space missions, including lunar exploration and development of India's own space station, Bharatiya Antariksh Station

How Indian startups are charting new course in downstream space sector

Downstream sector uses space data for practical applications; is projected to be worth $610 bn by 2031

ISRO chairman calls for investment in aerodynamic test facilities in India

ISRO chairman S Somanath on Thursday said that there was a lack of sufficient aerodynamic testing facilities in India and therefore, huge investments need to be made to create such facilities. Speaking at the SAROD 2024 event organised here by the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Somanath emphasised the importance of scaling up the country's computational capability. The ISRO chairman said that with the advancements in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), there was an initial line of thought that aerodynamic testing facilities were no longer required as most of the problems could be identified and solved computationally through simulations. "So, many of the test programs that were required to be done for the future aero vehicles were actually cut down and at one point we were told to do more simulations than testing. But, as time goes by, we realised that this is not the case. It became clear that the complementary nature of analysis and simulation with testing will continue. I

Pixxel raises $24 million, total Series B funding reaches $60 million

Funding will enable Pixxel to speed up the deployment of its Firefly constellation and other upcoming missions

India must become self-reliant in space data needs: IN-SPACe chief Goenka

Space sector regulator IN-SPACe's chairman Pawan Goenka on Monday said India faces significant gaps in meeting all its space data needs and remains heavily reliant on foreign providers. Addressing the GeoSmart India 2024 conference in Hyderabad, he also said without the geospatial industry growing, India cannot achieve its vision of being a Viksit Bharat by 2047. "Are all our data needs met today? My answer is definitely not... Affordability, low resolution data, high resolution data -- not enough, Goenka said. He said despite abundant data from Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), it falls short of providing "anytime, anywhere, any resolution" capabilities. Goenka said one of the first steps a country must take is to become self-reliant in data. "Currently, ISRO is the only Indian source, and there is a high dependency on foreign sources. I am not suggesting that we generate all the data ourselves, but all strategic data must be produced from sources within India," he ...

Autonomous space tech: China launches world's first self-driving satellite

China's 'self-driving' satellites, named Siwei Gaojing-2 03 and Gaojing-2 04, can autonomously maintain or change flight paths without ground intervention

Engine of Japan's new small rocket explodes during a test for 2nd time

The engine for a flagship new small Japanese rocket burst into flames Tuesday during a combustion test, but there was no injury or damage to the outside, officials said. The second failure in a row raises concern about the progress of the Epsilon S rocket, whose debut is expected for next year. The test was conducted inside of the restricted area at Japan's Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency is investigating, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters. The fire was followed by an explosion and plumes of white smoke. Tuesday's failure comes just over a year after the explosion last year of the same Epsilon S engine during a test, according to JAXA. Last year's explosion was related to damage to the ignition systems of the engine and JAXA has since taken the necessary steps, the agency has said. Development of flagship rockets such as Epsilon S is extremely important from the perspective of ensuring autonomy of ..