ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation)
ISRO is the national space agency of India, established 15 August 1969 under the Department of Atomic Energy and brought under the Department of Space (DOS) in 1972. It is India's sole agency for spac
Last verified:
At a Glance
- Headquarters
- Bengaluru, Karnataka, India (Antariksh Bhavan, Department of Space)
- Type
- Company (listed)
- Founded
- 15 August 1969 (superseded INCOSPAR; brought under Department of Space 1972)
- India entity
- null
- Listed
- Not applicable — government agency under Department of Space, Government of India
- Key India role
- ISRO is the national space agency of India, established 15 August 1969 under the Department of Atomic Energy and brought under the Department of Space (DOS) in 1972. It is India's sole agency for spac
- indicators
- []
- key specs
- []
What It Is
ISRO is the national space agency of India, established 15 August 1969 under the Department of Atomic Energy and brought under the Department of Space (DOS) in 1972. It is India's sole agency for space launch, satellites, deep-space missions and human spaceflight. Recent landmark missions include Chandrayaan-3 (first soft-landing near lunar south pole, 23 August 2023), SpaDeX (india's first in-space docking experiment, docking on 16 January 2025), SSLV-D3/EOS-08 (final SSLV developmental flight, 16 August 2024), and the LVM3 family (latest LVM3-M5/CMS-03 mission Nov 2 2025; LVM3-M6 Dec 2025). Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme targets 3 crewed missions by Q1 2027 (uncrewed G1 in Q4 2026), launching 3 astronauts to 400 km LEO for 3 days. Operational launch vehicles: PSLV (workhorse since 1994), LVM3 (4 t to GTO / 10 t to LEO heavy lift), GSLV Mk-II, SSLV (500 kg to 500 km LEO, 3-stage). Commercial arm: NSIL (since 2019) and legacy Antrix.
Deployments & Procurement
7 documented India deployment(s)/procurement(s).
| Agency | Context | Year | Quantity / Note | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple | Chandrayaan-3 lander Vikram + rover Pragyan soft-landed near lunar south pole (69°S) on 23 August 2023 at 18:04 IST (12:33 UTC) — India first country to land near lunar south pole, 4th country to soft-land on Moon | 2023 | — | [1][2][3] |
| Multiple | SpaDeX twin satellites (Target + Chaser, 220 kg each) launched 30 December 2024 on PSLV-C60; successful docking 16 January 2025 — India becomes 4th nation (after US/Russia/China) to demonstrate space docking | 2024 | — | [1][2][3] |
| Multiple | SSLV-D3/EOS-08 — final SSLV developmental flight, 16 August 2024; SSLV declared operational; ISRO conducted ground test of improved SS3 third stage 30 December 2025 | 2024 | — | [1][2][3] |
| Multiple | LVM3-M5/CMS-03 mission — 2 November 2025 (latest LVM3 mission per ISRO list); LVM3-M6 mission late December 2025 (heaviest launch mission, with MTAR & Godrej supplying Vikas engines and cryogenic subsystems) | 2025 | — | [1][2][3] |
| Multiple | PSLV-C53 mission 30 June 2022 hosted Dhruva Space DSOD-1U deployer space-qualification; PSLV-C55 (22 April 2023) hosted DSOL/DSOD-3U/DSOD-6U; PSLV-C58/POEM-3 hosted Dhruva LEAP-TD platform (Jan 2024) | 2022 | — | [1][2][3] |
| Multiple | ISRO's 100th satellite launch — 29 January 2025 (with MTAR Technologies supplying key propulsion components) | 2025 | — | [1][2][3] |
| Multiple | Operation Sindoor (May 2025) used ISRO satellites for ISR / communication support per multiple reports | 2025 | — | [1][2][3] |
Import Dependencies
Not analysed in this dossier.
Intelligence Assessment
Methodology: /research/methodology/
FAQ
When did ISRO land Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon?
23 August 2023 at 18:04 IST, near lunar south pole at 69°S — India became the 4th country to soft-land on the Moon and the 1st near the south pole
When is the first Indian crewed spaceflight under Gaganyaan targeted?
First crewed mission in Q1 2027, preceded by uncrewed G1 in Q4 2026; programme aims to send 3 astronauts to 400 km LEO for 3 days
Which ISRO mission demonstrated in-space docking?
SpaDeX (Space Docking Experiment) — twin satellites launched 30 Dec 2024 on PSLV-C60, docking achieved 16 January 2025, making India the 4th nation to demonstrate docking
What is the payload capacity of ISRO's SSLV?
~500 kg to 500 km Low Earth Orbit; 3-stage, 2 m diameter × 34 m long; declared operational after SSLV-D3/EOS-08 flight on 16 August 2024
Sources
- src-01Official
- src-02Credible
- src-03Credible
- src-04Official
- src-05Credible
- src-06Credible
- src-07Credible
- src-08Credible
- src-09Official
- src-10Indicative
- src-11Official
- src-12Official
- src-13Credible
- src-14Credible
- src-15Official
- src-16Credible
- src-17Official
- src-18Credible
- src-19Official
- src-20Official
- src-21Official