ISRO’s heaviest rocket, carrying 36 satellites, takes off.

The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) heaviest rocket, Launch Vehicle Mark 3 (LVM3 or GSLV Mark 3), successfully orbited 36 satellites of the United Kingdom-based OneWeb after taking off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR, Sriharikota at 12.07 a.m. (IST).

The 43.5-meter LVM3 weighed approximately 644 tonnes and carried 36 satellites weighing 5,796 kg, or approximately 5.7 tonnes. LVM3 has entered the global commercial launch service market with this launch.

LVM3-M2 is NewSpace India Limited’s (NSIL) dedicated commercial satellite mission. NSIL is a Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE) under the Government of India’s Department of Space. This mission is being carried out as part of a commercial agreement between NSIL and m/s Network Access Associates Limited (m/s OneWeb Ltd), a company based in the United Kingdom. OneWeb is a collaboration between India’s Bharti Enterprises and the United Kingdom’s government.

Speaking to the media an hour after takeoff, ISRO Chairman S. Somanath stated that all satellites were successfully separated. He mentioned that satellite separation takes time. Noting that this was a historic mission completed in the shortest amount of time possible, he stated that everything went exactly as planned. He also mentioned that the next M3 mission would include another 36 satellites.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, CEO of Bharti Enterprises, a major investor in OneWeb, stated that it is a new chapter for India in the space sector. He stated that launch vehicles are scarce, which presents an excellent opportunity for ISRO.