India: successful launch for LVM3 rocket and satellite program

Rocket before launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, India, Saturday, October 15, 2022 (Illustration image). AP

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It is a successful launch this Sunday, March 26 of 36 satellites for the Indian space industry, and a crowning achievement of the LVM 3 rocket developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation. India has just completed a low-orbiting programme of 618 satellites, carried out for the commercial OneWeb programme.

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With our correspondent in Bangalore, Côme Bastin

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the launch, which concludes a series of 18 successful orbit launches on behalf of OneWeb. "This reinforces India's leading role as a global provider of commercial space launch services, as well as its strategic autonomy," he wrote on Twitter.

Congratulations @NSIL_India @INSPACeIND @ISRO on yet another successful launch of LVM3 with 36 @OneWeb satellites. It reinforces India's leading role as a global commercial launch service provider in the true spirit of Aatmanirbharta. https://t.co/GflGAN2Wlr

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 26, 2023

One Web is supported by the Indian multinational Bharti, the British government and the French company Eutelsat. This program aims to put into low orbit a constellation of mini-satellites for high-speed Internet around the world.

The devices were originally supposed to be launched from Russia, but the war in Ukraine upset the plans. India has thus inherited its largest commercial space opportunity, as a test for its in-house LVM 3 launcher.

In total, India will have put more than 600 of these satellites into orbit. A success that New Delhi is counting on to attract other trade missions. Despite being one of the major space players in the civil sector, India currently accounts for only 2% of this market.

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  • India
  • Space
  • Narendra Damodardas Modi