Indian space agency launches its heaviest satellite

The LVM3-M6 rocket launched the American-made AST SpaceMobile communications satellite into low-Earth orbit.

The 6,100 kilo satellite was launched thanks to a modified version of the rocket that India plans to use in its future space missions.

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) highlighted that it is the “heaviest payload launched from Indian soil.”

This Wednesday’s launch is a boost for India’s ambitious low-cost space program.

India seeks bigger share in commercial satellite businessat a time when telephone, internet and other companies seek to expand their communications.

Modi called the launch a “proud milestone in India’s space journey.”

“It strengthens India’s heavy-lift launch capacity, and reinforces our growing role in the global commercial launch market,” Modi said in a statement.

ISRO launched another communications satellite CMS-03 this year weighing 4,410 kilos.

For these launches, India used an improved version of the rocket which he used to send an unmanned spacecraft to the Moon in August 2023.

The most populous country in the world has shown its space ambitions in the last decade, with the growth of its space program, which wants to rival established powers at a much lower price.

The Asian country also wants to launch an unmanned orbital mission, ahead of its first human spaceflight in 2027.

Modi announced plans to send an astronaut to the Moon by 2040.