Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has once again created history by achieving a significant advancement in space technology. ISRO has successfully completed a space docking operation, making India the fourth country in the world to accomplish this feat. This mission is an important step towards establishing India’s own space station in the future.
On December 30, ISRO launched two small satellites SDx01 (Chaser) and SDx02 (Target) into orbit using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). This experiment was conducted with the aim of learning space docking technology, which is essential for building a space station.
ISRO has made three attempts to dock these satellites so far but faced delays due to various technical challenges. On January 12, the satellites were within three meters of each other, but the docking process was postponed. Finally, ISRO announced the successful completion of the docking operation, demonstrating India’s growing expertise in advanced space technology.
With this achievement, India joins an elite group of nations, including the US, Russia and China, that possess space docking technology. The mission is in line with ISRO’s broader ambitions, including collecting samples from the moon and returning them to Earth, establishing an indigenous space station and sending humans to the moon by 2040.