Watch On
India will launch its first mission of 2025 this evening (Jan. 28), and you can watch the action live.
The Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) is scheduled to lift off from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, on the island of Sriharikota, today at 7:53 p.m. EST (0053 GMT and 6:23 a.m. local time on Jan. 29). It will be the 100th launch overall from the spaceport, according to ISRO.
You can watch the liftoff live here at Space.com courtesy of ISRO, or directly via the space agency. Coverage will start about 30 minutes before launch.
The 167-foot-tall (50.9 meters) GSLV will carry a satellite called NVS-02 to geostationary transfer orbit tonight.
NVS-02 is the second of five planned next-gen spacecraft in the Navigation with Indian Constellation. NavIC “is India’s independent regional navigation satellite system designed to provide accurate Position, Velocity and Timing (PVT) service to users in India as well as the region extending about 1500 km [930 miles] beyond the Indian landmass, which is its primary service area,” ISRO officials wrote in a mission description.
India started assembling NavIC about a decade ago and launched the first NVS satellite in May 2023, also aboard a GSLV rocket. The five spacecraft in this new series “are envisaged to augment [the] NavIC base layer constellation with enhanced features for ensuring continuity of services,” ISRO officials wrote.
Related: Facts about ISRO, the Indian Space Research Organisation
Tonight’s launch is the first of the year for India. The nation launched five space missions in 2024, including the historic SpaDeX satellite-docking demonstration on Dec. 30.
The NVS-02 liftoff will be the 100th overall from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, India’s chief spaceport. The first launch from the site occurred in August 1979, according to The Hindu.