SpaDeX, a statement of space power

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has made yet another commendable achievement with its success in the country’s first space docking mission SpaDeX. ISRO has described it as a historic moment, and it is an apt evaluation of the achievement. Many of the country’s future space explorations will be linked to the docking technology, and India is now among an elite group of countries that have mastered it. Only the US, Russia and China had this capability till now. The mission was achieved on Thursday when the two satellites – Chaser and Target – placed in the earth’s lower orbit by the PSLV, docked as expected. It was done after postponement of the event twice due to technical issues after the mission was launched on December 30. The successful docking shows that the issues were accurately identified and resolved. After the docking, it was about demonstrating that the two spacecraft could transfer electrical power to each other. They would now be separated and work with their payloads for a mission life of about two years.

The docking technology is essential for the setting up of the country’s first space station, named Bharatiya Antariksh Station, by 2035. The proposed space station is critical for microgravity experiments and other research projects; it is also needed for the Chandrayaan-4 mission planned for 2027, which aims to bring back samples from the moon. The docking capability is needed to execute other future plans such as the manned mission to the moon and later missions to other planets. The docking event has also provided facilities for experiments planned by start-ups. The experiments included a study of plant growth under microgravity conditions. ISRO has announced that the cowpea seeds it had sent to space onboard the PSLV-C60 POEM-4 platform germinated within four days of the launch of the mission. ISRO also successfully operated its first robotic arm in space as part of the SpaDeX mission. Development of the docking technology could lead to the offer of assembly and servicing solutions for global satellites which can translate into commercial opportunity.

ISRO’s operations have expanded and diversified in the last many years. In the last over five decades, it has grown from an agency that used basic satellites for weather prediction and communications into a major scientific institution into interplanetary exploration and deep space research. It has raised the country’s profile as a space power. A lot of humanity’s progress in the coming decades will be linked to its mastery of space and ISRO will be an important player in that race.