Countdown begins: ISRO's PSLV-C62 Mission scheduled for January 12 from Sriharikota

Andhra Pradesh: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will launch its PSLV-C62 mission on 12 January (Monday) at 10:17 am IST from the First Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), Sriharikota. Announcing the mission on X on Tuesday, ISRO said, “The Launch of PSLV-C62 Mission is scheduled on 12 January 2026 at 10:17 hrs IST from First Launch Pad (FLP), SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota.”

The upcoming mission follows ISRO’s recent success on December 24, when it launched the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite for the United States-based AST SpaceMobile. The satellite was successfully placed in orbit, marking another significant milestone for India’s space programme. The launch took place from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 8:55 am IST.

The BlueBird Block-2 satellite is a next-generation communications payload designed to enable high-speed cellular broadband connectivity directly to smartphones across the world. It is the heaviest commercial satellite ever launched into Low Earth Orbit by India’s LVM3 rocket and the largest commercial communications satellite to be deployed in that orbit. The mission also marked the sixth operational flight of the LVM3 launcher.

ISRO said the LVM3-M6/BlueBird Block-2 mission was a fully dedicated commercial launch. During the mission, the LVM3 placed the satellite into Low Earth Orbit from Indian soil, reinforcing India’s growing presence in the global commercial satellite launch market.

LVM3 is a three-stage heavy-lift launch vehicle developed by ISRO. It features two solid strap-on boosters (S200), a liquid core stage (L110), and a cryogenic upper stage (C25). The rocket has a lift-off mass of 640 tonnes, a height of 43.5 metres, and a payload capacity of up to 4,200 kg to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).

The PSLV-C62 launch is expected to further boost India’s space capabilities, strengthen satellite launch reliability, and enhance the country’s position in global space technology and commercial satellite deployment.

ANI