A recent satellite mission undertaken by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has unfortunately ended in failure due to a technical issue encountered during the launch phase. The mission, which aimed to deploy the EOS-09 Earth observation satellite, faced a critical setback in the third stage of the launch vehicle's operation.
The launch, originating from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, commenced as scheduled. Initial stages of the flight proceeded smoothly, with the first and second stages performing according to expectations. However, problems arose during the third stage, a crucial phase where a solid rocket motor is meant to provide a high thrust to the upper stage after the atmospheric phase of the launch. ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan reported a drop in chamber pressure within the motor case during this stage, which ultimately led to the mission's failure.
"Today we attempted a launch of the PSLV-C61 vehicle. The vehicle is a 4-stage vehicle. The first two stages performed as expected. During the third stage, we are seeing observation, and the mission could not be accomplished," Narayanan stated, indicating the point at which the anomaly occurred.
The launch vehicle in question was the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C61). The PSLV, often regarded as ISRO's workhorse rocket, has a storied history of successful satellite deployments. This recent failure marks a rare blemish on its otherwise impressive record.
EOS-09, the satellite that was intended for deployment, was designed as an Earth observation satellite, equipped with a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) payload. This would have enabled 24/7 observations of the Earth, irrespective of weather conditions. Its capabilities were considered particularly significant given ongoing security concerns along India's borders. The 3,735-pound satellite was scheduled to deploy approximately 18 minutes post-liftoff at an altitude of 332 miles.
ISRO has indicated that a thorough analysis will be conducted to determine the precise cause of the technical malfunction. A Failure Analysis Committee will likely be set up to investigate the setback. The investigation will involve internal and governmental external committees to probe the failure of the PSLV.
This incident represents the third such setback for ISRO's PSLV program, with previous failures occurring in 1993 and 2017. In September 1993, the PSLV-D1 launch failed due to software issues, leading to the mission crashing into the ocean. In 2017, a heat shield separation failure prevented the satellite from deploying, causing the rocket to lose velocity. Moreover, this is the second consecutive failure for ISRO, following a prior incident where a GSLV failed to place the NVS-02 satellite into the correct orbit in February 2025.
Despite this setback, India's space program has made significant strides. The country successfully placed a satellite in orbit around Mars in 2014 and became only the fourth nation to achieve a soft landing on the moon in August 2023. ISRO's ambitions continue to grow, and this incident will likely serve as a learning experience to further refine their space launch capabilities.
