Bengaluru: Indian Space Agency ISRO commenced a 24-hour countdown at 5:26 pm IST, Saturday, (1st Nov), ahead of the launch of the CMS-03/GSAT-7R communication satellite that is scheduled for 5:26 pm, Sunday (2nd Nov). The satellite is meant to provide connectivity between the Indian Navy’s diverse assets and their bases.
The 4,400 kg CMS-03 is the heaviest communication satellite to be launched by ISRO from home soil. This is ISRO’s fourth rocket launch mission of 2025.
Sunday’s launch mission will be carried out by the LVM3 rocket, which is India’s largest spacefaring vehicle. This will be the 8th flight of the LVM3 vehicle. Thus far, the LVM3 has had an unmatched track record and has delivered successes in all 7 launches.
After lift-off at 5:26 pm on Sunday, the three-stage rocket is expected to complete the mission in about 16 minutes. The satellite will be hurled into a lower initial orbit and then gradually raised into the destined orbit over the next few weeks.
Eventually, all heavy communication satellites are placed in a geostationary orbit, which is about 36,000 km above the Earth’s equator. From there, the satellite will be able to provide coverage for about one-third of the Earth. In this case, the CMS-03 will be placed above India, so that it can provide coverage in the vast maritime region surrounding India.
The CMS-03/GSAT-7R is a replacement for the ageing GSAT-7 that ISRO built for the Indian Navy in 2013. The 2,650 kg GSAT-7 was launched from overseas aboard Europe’s Ariane rocket in August 2013, as ISRO did not possess the capability to lift such a heavy satellite at the time. Therefore, ISRO paid the European firm to ferry the Indian satellite to space.
