ISRO would launch a US communication satellite using LVM3 rocket on a commercial basis next month, the space agency's chairman V Narayanan said on Monday.
Narayanan, who delivered the keynote address on the occasion of 68th Annual Day celebrations of Indian Railways Institute of Signal Engineering and Telecommunications (IRISET) here, also said the country's space programme would be on par with any other advanced nation in terms of launches, satellites and others by 2040.
"Launch date is not yet decided. It will be next month. It is a communication satellite, we are planning to launch. A commercial basis communication satellite we are going to launch using our LVM3 (Launch Vehicle Mark - III), vehicle," he told reporters on the sidelines.
He clarified that it is not a collaboration mission, but an American satellite would be launched on a commercial basis.
According to him, the ISRO, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the helm of affairs, is working on a lot of programmes.
Right now, 57 satellites are in orbit, and the number is expected to triple in three years.
Asked about upcoming projects, Narayanan said the PM has announced space sector reforms and that five launch vehicles have been handed over to private industrial consortiums.
"The first rocket is coming, we are going to launch it," he said.
The space agency is working towards the Gaganyaan programme (project to send a three-day manned mission to the Low Earth Orbit of 400 km with a crew of three members and bring them safely back to Earth) and also on a couple of important Earth observation satellites, the ISRO chief said.
On other projects, he said many projects have been approved by the union government such as Chandrayaan 4 and 5. Chandrayaan-4 is targeted for 2028.
Chandrayaan-5 is a collaborative mission with JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency).
"Today, when you look at the country, lot of demand for satellites in the area of earth observation, communication and navigation. We are working towards that. Then, we are also working on space station building," he said.
The central government has approved the first module, he said.
As per reports, the first module of the BAS (Bharatiya Antariksh Station), the country's own home-built space station, by 2028, is planned to be launched by 2028.
In his address, he said ISRO is also working on sending an Indian astronaut to the moon using an Indian rocket and bringing back safely by 2040, as per PM Modi's direction.
To a query on the new areas ISRO and Indian Railways can collaborate, Narayanan said they can work together to ensure the safety of passengers and enabling communication and television signal.
"If I summarise the Indian space programme, which started with the cycle era, by 2040, we will be on par with any other space bearing nation, in terms of launches, satellites, communication, application or capabilities," he added.
Chandrayaan-4 will attempt to bring back samples from the moon — a capability currently demonstrated only by the US, Russia and China.
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