India Review, vol. 10, no. 4, OctoberDecember, 2011, pp. 345350Copyright Taylor & Francis Group, LLCISSN 1473-6489 print; 1557-3036 onlineDOI: 10.1080/14736489.2011.624012

Indias Space Program: A Chronology

RAJESWARI PILLAI RAJAGOPALAN

Many a time, India, being a developing country with its own shareof problems, is criticized for having devoted significant resources todevelop a space program. However, what is often overlooked is thatlike many other countries, Indias space program has been developedeffectively to tackle precisely the socio-economic problems that werebeing faced by India. Thus, soon after India gained its independence in1947, Indian scientists and political leaders recognized the need to aug-ment application of science for developmental and defense purposes,although the latter is not pronounced in Indias case.

In terms of organization, the Indian Space Research Organization(ISRO) was formed in 1969. However, prior to that, the governmenthad set up Space Research within the Department of Atomic Energyin 1962. Space research received a big boost when the government setup the Space Commission and the Department of Space in 1972. ISROwas brought under the Department of Space in the same year.

As far as its research and applications are concerned, Indias forayinto space in the initial years was confined to the area of remote sens-ing and communication. One of the first highlights was when Indialaunched its first satelliteAryabhatainto space on April 19, 1975.Aryabhata, built by the ISRO, was launched by the Soviet Union fromKapustin Yar using a Cosmos-3M launch vehicle. Thereafter, Indiahas sent a number of satellites into space, including Apple (1981);Bhaskara-I (1979); Bhaskara-II (1981); INSAT-1 series (1A, 1B, 1C,and 1D); INSAT-2 series (2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D); IRS series (1A, 1B,1E, P2, 1C, P3, and 1D); Rohini series (1A, 1B, 2, AND 3); and Sross(Stretched Rohini Satellite Series).

Among Indias satellite programs, INSAT series and IRS deservespecial mention. The Indian National Satellite (INSAT) system,

Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan is a Senior Fellow in Security Studies at theObserver Research Foundation, New Delhi.

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launched in the early 1980s, is one of the largest domestic commu-nication satellite systems operating in the Asia Pacific region. TheINSAT series brought about revolutionary changes in Indias com-munication sector. The series, consisting of multipurpose satellites,offer services in the area of television broadcasting, weather forecast-ing, disaster warning, and search and rescue missions. The INSATseries in service today are: INSAT-2F, INSAT-3A, INSAT-3B, INSAT-3C, INSAT-3E, KALPANA-1, GSAT-2, EDUSAT, and the recentlylaunched INSAT-4A.

On the other hand, India has the largest constellation of RemoteSensing Satellites, providing services to both national and global cus-tomers. Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) Satellites provide a range ofspatial resolutions and the state of the art cameras of the IRS space-craft are reported to provide pictures of the Earth in different spec-tral bands. The IRS series that are in service today include IRS-1C,IRS-1D, IRS-P3, OCEANSAT-1, Technology Experimental Satellite(TES), RESOURCESAT-1, and the CARTOSAT-1 that launchedrecently. Some of the future ones planned include: CARTOSAT-2, andOCEANSAT-2.

Toward the end of the 1970s, India had also developed variouslaunch vehicles, which have made the Indian space quite independent,and Indias launch capabilities were a reflection of its technologicaladvancement. Today, its space launching capabilities are particularlynoteworthy, and it is offering launch services to the world at large.Some of the notable launches were the Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV),Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV), Polar Satellite LaunchVehicle (PSLV), and Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV).Indias GSLV (the project started in 1990) launched successfully onApril 18, 2001, is considered particularly significant since it enabledIndia to launch its INSAT-type satellites into geostationary orbit on itsown and made them less dependent on foreign rockets. India until thenhad relied on the Soviet Union to launch heavy satellites. India is alsoreported to be working on reusable launch vehicles (RLVs)AVATARScramjetalthough they are still in the conceptual stage.

Finally, Indias Chandrayaan mission has given Indias space pro-file a great boost. Launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre,Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh on October 22, 2008 and operated untilAugust 2009, Chandrayaan became Indias first unmanned lunar mis-sion. The mission was a major technology demonstrator too as India

Indias Space Program: A Chronology 347

became one of a few countries to develop its own technology to explorethe Moon. Among the specific study areas were the search for surfaceor sub-surface water-ice on the moon and chemical and mineralogi-cal mapping of the entire lunar surface for distribution of mineral andchemical elements such as magnesium, aluminum, silicon, calcium, ironand titanium as well as high atomic number elements such as radon,uranium and thorium with high spatial resolution.

As far as commercialization of space is concerned, ISROs commer-cial wing, Antrix, does the marketing of Indias space services globally,particularly the launch services, which are growing at a fast pace. Antrixhas remained a single-point agency for coordinating with the globalcommunity, in terms of making available IRS data, data processingequipment, or for launch services using Indias PSLV.

Indias engagement with the international community in the spacedomain has also been significant, starting from its cooperation withthe Soviet Union for its first satellite. India today has Memorandumof Understanding/Agreements with 26 countries/space agencies. TheUN-sponsored Centre for Space Science and Technology Educationin Asia and the Pacific (CSSTE-AP), established in India in 1995,offers regular training to space personnel of the Asia Pacific region.India offers training to personnel from the Asia Pacific also throughits Sharing of Experience in Space (SHARES) program. Additionally,ISRO launches scientific payloads of other agencies such as theModular Opto-electronic Scanner of DLR, Germany, among others.

Indias Space Program: A Timeline

1961The government put Space Research under the jurisdiction of the

Department of Atomic Energy.

1962The IndianNational Committee for Space Research (INCOSPAR) was

established with Dr. Vikram Sarabhai as its Chairman; ThumbaEquatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) was also formed inthe same year.

1963TERLS launched the first sounding rocket.

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1969The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was established.

197276ISRO conducts air-borne remote sensing experiments.

1975April 19: Indias first satellite Aryabhata launched.

1979June 7: Bhaskara-I fired into space.August 10: ISRO launched SLV-3 with Rohini Technology Payload on

board, although the satellite could not be placed in orbit.

1981June 19: An experimental geo-stationary communication satellite

APPLEsuccessfully launched.November 20: Bhaskara-II was launched.

19822003INSAT satellites series launched.

1982April 10: INSAT-1A launched.

1983August 30: INSA-1B was launched.

1984April: Indo-Soviet manned space mission launched.

1988July 21: INSAT-1C was launched.

1990June 12: INSAT-1D was launched.1992July 10: INSAT-2A was launched.

1993July 23: INSAT-2B launched.

1995December 7: INSAT-2C launched.

Indias Space Program: A Chronology 349

1997June 4: INSAT-2D launched.

1999April 3: INSAT-2E launched by Ariane from Kourou French Guyana.May 26: IRS-P4 (OCEANSAT) launched by PSLV along with Korean

KITSAT-3 and German DLR-TUBSAT from Sriharikota.

2000March 22: INSAT-3B launched from Kourou French Guyana.

2001October 22: PSLV-C3 launched three satellites, Technology

Experiment Satellite (TES) of ISRO, BIRD of Germany, andPROBA of Belgium.

2002January 24: INSAT-3C by Ariane from Kourou French Guyana.September 12: PSLV-C4 launched KALPANA-1 satellite from

Sriharikota.

2003April 10: INSAT-3A launched by Ariane from Kourou French

Guyana.September 28: INSAT-3E launched.October 17: PSLV-C5 launched RESOURCESAT-1 satellite.

2004September 20: GSLV launched EDUSAT.

2005May 5: PSLV-C6 carried CARTOSAT-1 and HAMSAT satellites into

orbit.December 2: Launch of INSAT-4A by Ariane from Kourou French

Guyana.

2007January 10: Indias CARTOSAT-2 and Space Capsule Recovery

Experiment (SRE-1), Indonesias LAPAN-TUBSAT andArgentinas PEHUENSAT-1 launched together.

January 22: Successful recovery of SRE-1 from Bay of Bengal after itre-entered the earths atmosphere.

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March 12: Launch of INSAT-4B by Ariane from Kourou FrenchGuyana.

April 23: PSLV-C8 launched Italian astronomical satellite AGILE.September 2: Launch of INSAT-4CR.

2008January 21: PSLV-C10 launched TECSAR satellite under a commercial

contract with Antrix Corporation.April 28: PSLV-C9 launched CARTOSAT-2A, IMS-1, and 8 foreign

satellites.October 22: Chandrayaan-1 launched by a modified version of PSLV

XL.November 14: Moon Impact Probe landed on Moons South Pole.

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