Docking technology plays a vital role in space when multiple rocket launches are needed to achieve common mission objectives.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) released a video on Friday showcasing the successful satellite docking as part of its Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX), making India the fourth country, after the US, Russia, and China, to achieve this technological milestone, reports Hindustan Times.
The video captured the coupling of the satellites in space, followed by a message from the new ISRO chairperson, V Narayanan, who congratulated the space agency team for making the achievement possible.
“ISRO successfully completed docking of two SPADEX satellites (SDX-01 & SDX-02) in the early hours of January 16, 2025,” the space agency said in the caption for the video it released on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
This docking experiment is crucial for the successful execution of the country’s ambitious future missions, including Chandrayaan-4, Gaganyaan, establishing a space station, and landing an astronaut on the moon.
ISRO has also announced that undocking and power transfer tests will be conducted in the coming days.
In October last year, the government announced that India will have its own space station, called the “Bharatiya Antriksh Station,” by 2035.
The SpaDex mission was successfully launched on December 30, 2024 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
“India docked its name in space history! Good Morning India ISRO’s SpaDeX mission accomplishes historic docking success. Proud to witness this moment!” ISRO had said in a post on X.
The historic moment came just days after the space agency, on January 12, brought the two spacecraft to three metres and then placed them back at a safe distance in its trial attempt to dock the satellites.
ISRO shared the docking process of the SpaDeX satellites in a post on X and said that it begins with the completion of a manoeuvre from 15m to 3m hold point.
Bd-pratidin English/Fariha Nowshin Chinika
