Saare Jahan Se Acha: India’s biggest space moments that will swell you with pride

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) 's third moonshot, Chandrayaan-3, in a significant milestone successfully completed its second and final deboosting on Sunday morning, August 20 beginning India closer towards its bid to land on the Moon’s surface. If everything goes according to plan, India in just three days will join the United States, Russia and China to have smoothly touched the lunar surface. However, this is not the first time that the Indian space agency is about to achieve such a huge feat. In fact, it has several times in the past matched the achievements of its global peers, making the country proud.

Here are a few of India’s biggest space moments that will make you swell with pride: 

Chandrayaan-1

Chandrayaan-1, India’s first mission to the moon, was successfully launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on October 22, 2008. The mission is still considered to be a star in the performance of the Indian space agency as the mission significantly contributed towards studying the lunar surface for chemical, mineralogical and photo-geologic mapping of the moon. However, ISRO had to conclude the mission when it lost communication with the spacecraft on  August 29, 2009.

Gaganyaan 

Gaganyaan is ISRO’s first human space flight programme through which the agency will send a three-member crew to space for a period of five to seven days. The mission was first announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018 during his independence day address to the nation.

ISRO plans to send two unmanned missions to space as part of the Gaganyaan mission. While the first unmanned mission was scheduled to be launched in 2022 to coincide with the 75th anniversary of India's independence, it was delayed due to technical challenges and the COVID-19 pandemic, the timeline was revised. It is, however, speculated to take place in late 2023 or early 2024. 

Mangalyaan

Mangalyaan, India's first interplanetary mission, is considered to be a huge achievement in ISRO’s work. Launched in 2014, the mission made India become the first nation in Asia to reach Mars orbit, beating China and others. The mission was focused on studying the Martian atmosphere, surface, and mineral composition. 

PSLV-C56 with 7 satellites

Days after the launch of Chandrayaan-3 on July 14, ISRO successfully launched its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C56) mission from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on July 30 and placed them into intended orbits. The PSLV-C56 lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, carrying seven foreign satellites.

Cartosat series

With a series of Cartosat-2A, Cartosat-2B, and Cartosat-3, ISRO has successfully launched these earth observation satellites that are primarily used for cartographic applications, mapping, and monitoring.