SpaDeX Mission: ISRO successfully docks satellites; becomes fourth country to achieve milestone

ISRO successfully completed the docking of satellites as part of its Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX), the space agency announced in the social media platform X.

"Manoeuvre from 15m to 3m hold point completed. Docking initiated with precision, leading to successful spacecraft capture. Retraction completed smoothly, followed by rigidisation for stability. Docking successfully completed," ISRO wrote in the post.

This makes India the fourth country in the world to have achieved the feat.



This achievement follows an earlier trial on January 12, where ISRO brought the two spacecraft to within three meters of each other before moving them back to a safe distance in preparation for the docking maneuver.

The Indian space agency had announced earlier on Sunday that its two satellites, part of the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX), were successfully brought within three meters of each other in a trial attempt before being safely moved back to a secure distance. The space agency added that the docking process would be conducted after further analysis of the collected data.

"A trial attempt to close the distance to 15 meters and then to 3 meters was completed. The spacecraft were then moved back to a safe distance. The docking process will proceed after analyzing the data further," ISRO said in a post on X.

The SpaDeX project missed two previously scheduled docking attempts on January 7 and January 9.

The mission was launched on December 30, 2024, with the PSLV C60 rocket carrying two small satellites—SDX01 (Chaser) and SDX02 (Target)—along with 24 other payloads. Approximately 15 minutes after liftoff from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, the spacecraft, each weighing around 220 kg, were placed into a 475-kilometer circular orbit as planned.

ISRO describes the SpaDeX project as a cost-effective technology demonstrator aimed at showcasing in-space docking using small spacecraft.