Produced by: Tarun Mishra
ISRO Chief S. Somanath announced that India's inaugural human spaceflight mission, Gaganyaan, is now expected to launch in 2026, marking a milestone for the country’s ambitious crewed space exploration goals.
Somanath shared that Chandrayaan-4, a mission focused on bringing back lunar samples, is slated for 2028, enhancing India’s lunar research and exploration capabilities.
The Chandrayaan-5 mission, a joint moon landing effort with Japan's JAXA, was initially scheduled for 2025 but is now postponed to after 2028, with India providing the lander and Japan supplying a 350-kg rover for the mission.
ISRO is set to launch the TDS-01, an electric-propulsion satellite, in December, marking advancements in energy-efficient satellite technologies.
A collaborative mission with NASA, which had been delayed multiple times, is now on track to launch next year, enhancing space partnerships between India and the US.
Success in the Chandrayaan-5 mission is anticipated to lay the groundwork for India’s first crewed mission to the moon by 2040, with an eventual goal of more complex lunar operations.
Compared to Chandrayaan-3’s 27-kg rover, Chandrayaan-5 will carry a much heavier 350-kg rover, presenting new logistical and technical challenges for ISRO's lunar mission teams.
At an IIT Delhi event, Somanath commended Elon Musk’s work in the space industry, noting SpaceX’s influence and innovations as inspirational benchmarks in global space advancements.