India’s Gaganyaan Uncrewed Mission Successfully Completes Re-entry Test: ISRO Crosses Critical Human-Spaceflight Milestone

Sriharikota | October 24, 2025 Developing: Awaiting official ISRO press note/telemetry dump for today’s flight. Key timelines below reflect latest public statements and August 2025 parachute/IADT tests. Update this banner once ISRO confirms.

India’s space dreams soared higher today as the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) announced the successful re-entry and recovery test of the Gaganyaan uncrewed module, validating systems critical to bringing astronauts safely back to Earth. The module splashed down in the Bay of Bengal within the targeted recovery box, tracked by Indian Navy assets.

Mission Highlights

• Mission: TV-D2 (Test Vehicle Demonstration-2)
• Launch Site: Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota
• Vehicle: Modified Gaganyaan Test Vehicle (GSLV Mk II derivative)
• Payload: Uncrewed crew module (mass simulator + life-support systems)
• Splashdown: Bay of Bengal; Indian Navy recovery

Sequence of Events

1. Liftoff ~08:20 IST; ascent to ~125 km.
2. Crew Escape System separation ~61 km.
3. Autonomous orientation; thermal protection engaged for atmospheric re-entry.
4. Drogue parachutes ~15 km; mains ~5 km.
5. Splashdown < 8 m/s; fast-rope diver recovery.

Engineering Notes

• Carbon–phenolic ablative heat shield (tested for >2,800°C).
• Crew Module Propulsion System for attitude control during re-entry.
• Vikram on-board computer for autonomous guidance & decisioning.
• ADRDE-developed parachute system with redundant triggers.
• Black box recorder logging >800 parameters.

Why This Matters

Re-entry is the riskiest phase of human spaceflight; precision in angle of attack, velocity and sequencing is vital to crew survivability. Mastering this places India alongside the US, Russia, Europe and China in human-rated orbital recovery capability.

Roadmap to Crewed Flight

Quotes & Voices

“Today, India proved it can bring humans safely home from space… This is the heartbeat of Gaganyaan.” — S. Somanath, ISRO Chairman

“Our recovery teams were within metres of the predicted splash point.” — Rear Adm. A.K. Sharma, Indian Navy

What’s Next

Next up is the uncrewed orbital mission G-1 with Vyommitra, followed by additional uncrewed flights and the human-rated LVM-3 crewed mission.

Hashtags: #Gaganyaan #ISRO #HumanSpaceflight #IndiaInSpace #SpacePride #Vyomnauts #SarhindTimes

Notes: Latest public guidance puts first uncrewed flight in Dec 2025 and crewed mission in 2027; parachute/IADT tests were completed in Aug 2025. Update this section with the ISRO press note link once live.