ISRO completes first orbit-raising manoeuvre of NVS-03 navigation satellite
The Liquid Apogee Motor fired for 36 minutes on Oct 31, lifting the navigation satellite toward its final slot after the flawless GSLV-F18 launch.
The manoeuvre on October 31 at 4:48 pm IST saw the satellite's Liquid Apogee Motor burn for about 36 minutes, lifting NVS-03 from its transfer orbit toward the designated geosynchronous slot. ISRO will conduct further orbit-raising burns before the satellite settles into service.
The mission has been a study in redemption: after the NVS-02 failure in January 2025 - traced to a disconnected drive signal in an oxidiser-line pyro valve - ISRO flew NVS-03 with those pyro valves already open, eliminating the fault path. The GSLV-F18 launch itself was flawless, placing the 2,232 kg satellite in orbit about 18 minutes after the 11:51 pm liftoff from Sriharikota.
NVS-03 carries an indigenously developed rubidium atomic clock and adds the L1 signal alongside L5 and S-band, restoring NavIC's operational baseline after years of degraded service. Prime Minister Modi and the Ministry of External Affairs both congratulated ISRO's scientists, calling it another milestone in India's space journey and its 'One Nation, One Time' push.
