ISRO sets SpaDex sats off on historic journey; may dock next week

IN one of those rare night launches, the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) workhorse PSLV-C60 vehicle on Monday has successfully launched the SpaDex (Space Docking Experiment) satellites in the intended orbit.

- S V KRISHNA CHAITANYA

In about a week, for the first time, the space agency will attempt to join together two satellites in space and demonstrate transfer of electrical power transmission. This is deemed to be one of the most complex space missions undertaken till date by ISRO.

Once accomplished, it will place India in an elite league of spacefaring nations. The ability of two indigenous satellites to autonomously rendezvous, dock, and undock in orbit, is a complex and high-stakes operation mastered by only a handful of nations, including Russia, the United States and China.

The SpaDex mission is the 99th launch by ISRO. The 100th launch will be of a GSLV rocket in January, during which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to be in attendance. The SpaDex mission involved two small satellites, designated SDX01 and SDX02, each weighing approximately 220kg.