Union Minister Jitendra Singh announced on Monday that the second successful docking of satellites aboard the PSLV-C60/SpaDeX mission has been accomplished. The minister shared the update through a post on X.

The PSLV-C60/SpaceX mission was launched successfully on December 30, 2024. The satellites were first docked on January 16, 2025, at 6:20 AM and successfully undocked on March 13, 2025, at 9:20 AM. Further experiments related to the mission are scheduled to take place in the next two weeks, the minister added.

SpaDeX mission

The SpaDeX mission which was launched by theIndian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on December 30 last year sent two satellites, SDX01 and SDX02, into space to try out a new docking experiment.

ISRO successfully undocked the two satellites on March 13, 2025, during their first attempt, with the undocking taking place at 9:20 AM (IST). The satellites were undocked while in a circular orbit 460 kilometres above Earth, with a 45-degree tilt. Both satellites are now flying on their own, and everything is working normally.

With this achievement, ISRO has successfully demonstrated all the skills needed for rendezvous, docking, and undocking operations in space.

ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan explained, “On January 16, we achieved a big milestone by successfully docking both satellites together, making them rotate as one. After that, we needed to separate them in the undocking process. We did a lot of studies and analysis, built a simulator, and carried out 120 tests to ensure there were no mistakes. On March 13, at 9:20 AM, we succeeded in the undocking on the very first attempt.”

When questioned about India’s upcoming manned missions, ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan said that the agency takes valuable lessons from every small setback. He stated, “This technology is very complex, and we learn from both our own and others' challenges. We are addressing all setbacks and are confident in the efforts being made. The dedication of Indian scientists is truly remarkable.” 

 

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