Proba-3 (Project for On-Board Autonomy 3) is the first close formation flying mission for the European Space Agency (ESA). It consists of two independent, three-axis stabilised spacecraft flying 150 meters from one another with the ability to accurately control the attitude and separation of the two craft. Such formation flying will be maintained for 6 hours, creating ″artificial solar eclipse″ for the satellite below. The spacecraft pair will fly a highly elliptical orbit divided between periods of accurate formation flying around apogee, when payload operations will be possible, and periods of free flight.
PSLV-XL is the upgraded version of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle in its standard configuration boosted by more powerful, stretched strap-on boosters with 12 tonne propellant load. Weighing 320t at lift-off, the vehicle uses larger strap-on motors (PSOM-XL or S12) to achieve higher payload capability. On 29 December 2005, ISRO successfully tested the improved version of strap-on booster for the PSLV. The first use of PSLV-XL was the launch of Chandrayaan-1 by PSLV C11. The payload capability for this variant is 1,800 kg to SSO.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is the space agency of the Government of India headquartered in the city of Bangalore. Its vision is to "harness space technology for national development while pursuing space science research and planetary exploration."
INFO WIKISince July 2025, the European Space Agency’s pair of Proba-3 satellites has already created 57 artificial solar eclipses. So far, the mission has collected more than 250 hours of high-resolution videos of the Sun’s atmosphere, called the c…
The European Space Agency has regained contact with the Coronagraph spacecraft of its Proba-3 mission after more than a month of silence. Launched aboard an ISRO PSLV-XL rocket in December 2024, the Proba-3 mission’s Coronagraph and Occult…
A month after an anomaly onboard the Proba-3 mission caused ground control to lose contact with the Coronagraph spacecraft, the mission team shares great news: the spacecraft has phoned home, re-establishing the lost connection.
The European Space Agency announced on 6 March that it had lost contact with one of the two spacecraft that make up its PROBA-3 mission. Both PROBA-3 spacecraft were launched aboard an ISRO PSLV-XL rocket in December 2024. The mission’s Co…
An anomaly onboard the Proba-3 mission’s Coronagraph spacecraft led to loss of contact between the spacecraft and ground control. The root cause of the anomaly is under investigation and mission teams are working hard to recover the situat…
Demonstration Flight for Russia's new Soyuz-5 launch vehicle, with a mass simulator on board. Details TBD.
Amazon Leo, formerly known as Project Kuiper, is a mega constellation of satellites in Low Earth Orbit that will offer broadband internet access, thi…
A batch of 24 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.
The ViaSat-3 is a series of three Ka-band satellites is expected to provide vastly superior capabilities in terms of service speed and flexibility fo…
Amazon Leo, formerly known as Project Kuiper, is a mega constellation of satellites in Low Earth Orbit that will offer broadband internet access, thi…
A batch of 25 satellites for the Starlink mega-constellation - SpaceX's project for space-based Internet communication system.
Progress resupply mission to the International Space Station.
Optical Earth observation satellite for the Pakistan government's SUPARCO.
Officially described as "Satellite-Internet Technology Demonstration Satellites". Probably 4 test satellites for the Chinese state-owned LEO commu…
Unknown satellite(s) for the Russian military.