India launches commercial space mission for Europe

Replicating such missions frequently like Elon Musk's SpaceX would be key, experts say

- Shouvik Das

At 4:04 pm on Thursday, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) took off from the Indian Space Research Organisation's (Isro) launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. While the PSLV, India's most successful rocket to date, has done this many times before—Thursday marked the 59th successful commercial mission—this launch was special. This was the first commercial space mission that India helped Europe execute.

Missions such as these, experts said, will be critical to the success of India's pitch to become a major spacefaring nation, since it helps build global confidence in nations choosing India as a launch partner. The move, executed by Isro's commercial arm NewSpace India Ltd (NSIL), comes after the latter signed a commercial agreement with the government of Australia on 26 June to launch their biggest satellite to date. That mission is due for execution in 2026.