Context:
Indian Space Situational Assessment Report (ISSAR) for 2024 Released
Key Highlights of India’s Space Program (2024-25):
- Spacecraft Launches & Operations –
- Total spacecraft launched: 136 new spacecraft were deployed.
- Government-owned operational satellites:
- 22 satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
- 31 satellites in Geo-synchronous Earth Orbit (GEO).
- Active Deep Space Missions –
- Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter (CH2O) continues its lunar observations.
- Aditya-L1 positioned at Sun-Earth Lagrange Point (L1) for solar studies.
- Collision Avoidance & Space Debris Management –
- Collision Avoidance Manoeuvres (CAM): 10 CAMs executed by ISRO in 2024 to prevent satellite collisions.
- Atmospheric Re-entry: 9 Indian satellites re-entered Earth’s atmosphere, including Cartosat-2.
- Spacecraft Decommissioning – Scatsat-1, INS-2B, and EOS-7 were de-orbited post-mission.
- Technology demonstration missions – POEM-3 and POEM-4 successfully de-orbited their upper stages to 350 km altitude.
- India’s Leadership in Space Sustainability –
- Global Space Governance: India chairs the UN working group on Long-term Sustainability of Outer Space Activities.
- ISRO’s Role in Space Debris Mitigation: Chaired the Inter-Agency Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) for 2023-24.
- Contributed to:
- Revision of IADC space debris mitigation guidelines.
- Declaration of Debris-Free Space Mission (DFSM), aiming for all Indian space actors (government & private) to achieve debris-free missions by 2030.
Source: TOI
Previous Year Question
Consider the following statements:
1. The Mangalyaan launched by ISRO is also called the Mars Orbiter Mission
2. It made India the second country to have a spacecraft orbit the Mars after USA
3. It made India the only country to be successful in making its spacecraft orbit the Mars in its very first attempt
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2016 Prelims]
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: (c)