Spadex Launched: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully launched its new mission, Spadex, via the PSLV rocket, marking a major achievement in space technology.
Before the launch, the mission had been delayed by two minutes due to technical reasons. The success of the mission depends on the docking and undocking of two satellites in space, a feat that has only been achieved by Russia, the USA, and China so far.
ISRO successfully launched the “Space Docking Experiment” through its PSLV rocket, with the launch taking place at 10 PM from Sriharikota. The mission has been named Spadex. After the launch, ISRO issued a statement saying that this mission would be a milestone for India’s space program. The mission involves successfully docking and undocking two satellites in space.
According to ISRO officials, the success of this mission will help in realizing India’s future missions, such as Chandrayaan-4, India’s own space station, and the eventual journey of an Indian astronaut to the Moon. In this mission, the PSLV rocket will place two spacecraft—Spacecraft A (SDX01) and Spacecraft B (SDX02)—in an orbit that will keep them five kilometers apart. Following this, ISRO scientists will attempt to bring them within three meters of each other, after which they will dock at an altitude of about 470 kilometers above Earth. Subsequently, the satellites will also undergo undocking.
If successful, India will join a select group of nations that have achieved such an experiment in space. Until now, this achievement has been limited to the USA, China, and Russia.
ISRO officials also stated that the PSLV rocket will place the SDX-1 and SDX-2 satellites in a circular orbit at 476 kilometers and will attempt the space docking experiment (Spadex) in the first week of January. ISRO added, “Spadex is an ambitious mission to establish India’s capability in orbital docking, which will be a crucial technology for future human space missions and satellite service missions.”
The mission’s launch time was initially scheduled for 9:58 PM but was pushed back by two minutes due to technical reasons, with the final launch taking place at 10 PM.
