How 2024 Was Emblematic of India's Space Ambitions

On January 1, 2024, as ISRO's PSLV C58 surged into the skies, leaving a feathery plume of exhaust trailing behind it, a new chapter in India's space exploration was charted.

- SANJAY NEKKANTI

N January 1, 2024, as ISRO's PSLV C58 surged into the skies, leaving a feathery plume of exhaust trailing behind it, a new chapter in India's space exploration was charted. Carrying the XPoSat mission along with 10 payloads on the PSLV Orbital Experimental Module-3 into the orbits, ISRO was sending a message to the world: India is rising as a global Space powerhouse, and that right now is the moment to contribute with bold, shared ambitions to solutions enabled by space.

The launch of C58 symbolised the dynamism and collaborative spirit of India's space programme. At its core was a nearly 470-kilogram satellite dedicated to studying supernovae, neutron stars and black holes—an ambitious leap in scientific research. Equally noteworthy was the growing wave of Indian startups and research institutes poised to space-qualify their own technologies, underscoring the nation's increasingly vital role in the global space ecosystem.