BENGALURU, India (Diya TV) — India has become the fourth nation to achieve successful in-orbit satellite docking, marking a significant advancement in its space capabilities. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) conducted the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) on Thursday, successfully docking two satellites in orbit.

The mission was two 220-kilogram satellites named Chaser and Target, which were launched by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) on December 30, 2024. With a series of accurate maneuvers, the spacecraft successfully docked at an altitude of about 475 kilometers above Earth. ISRO announced it through social media as “Spacecraft docking completed! A historic moment.”

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the achievement, saying it was “a significant stepping stone for India’s ambitious space missions in the years to come.” This technological achievement is a precursor to future missions: satellite servicing, human spaceflight, and the development of an indigenous space station by 2035.

The SpaceX mission showed the transfer of electric power from one spacecraft to another when in docked conditions, a technology that is inevitable for long-duration missions and also for in-orbit robotics operations. This marked India’s presence in the successful list of others like the US, Russia, and China.

This achievement by ISRO is another sign that India is a growing player in space activities, after setting milestones like touching the lunar surface near the moon’s south pole with Chandrayaan-3 in 2023.