Weighing 4,410 kg, CMS-03 surpasses the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft, and proves the reliability and versatility of the LVM3, India’s most powerful launch vehicle dubbed “Baahubali”
The successful launch of India’s heaviest-ever satellite, CMS-03 (GSAT-7R), marks a defining moment in India’s march toward its first human spaceflight under the Gaganyaan programme. The launch also demonstrates the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (Isro) growing confidence in managing complex missions, which is a crucial prerequisite for sending humans safely into orbit and getting them back safely.
Weighing 4,410 kg, CMS-03 surpasses the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft, and proves the reliability and versatility of the LVM3, India’s most powerful launch vehicle dubbed “Baahubali”. The mega launch vehicle will also carry Indian astronauts for the Gaganyaan mission, requiring multiple tests to understand its performance metrics.
It plans three uncrewed test flights, beginning with G1 before the end of this fiscal year, to validate life-support systems, crew safety, and re-entry mechanisms. These launches will ultimately lead to India’s first crewed mission, which will make the country only the fourth in the world to send humans into space.
The Indian space organisation has also mastered the indigenous CE20 cryogenic engine, a technological feat that allows it to place multiple payloads in precisely different orbits. The ability to master and restart cryogenic propulsion — one of the most challenging aspects of rocketry — places India among the few nations capable of advanced orbital missions without foreign dependence. It allows Isro to give required thrust to the spacecraft in vacuum conditions, making it travelling for longer distances.
CMS-03 is more than a communication satellite. It is a strategic asset. It will provide secure, high-capacity communication links across the Indian Ocean region and India, ensuring seamless connectivity for the armed forces, especially the Navy.
In the era of drone warfare, the importance of secure satellite communication cannot be understated — a fact that Ukraine testified by standing strong against Russia, with the help of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellites.
