In the quiet orbit above Earth, 500 kilometres high, two Indian satellites are dancing. Not to music, but to maths. ISRO’s latest mission is staging a rare and precise dogfight in space — a high-speed manoeuvre that echoes the aerial duels of fighter jets, only this one unfolds in the vacuum of space.
These satellites, part of the SPADEX (Space Docking Experiment) mission, are not just flying fast — they’re flying smart. Travelling at 28,800 kilometres per hour, they zip across the skies, 28 times faster than a commercial jet and 10 times the speed of a bullet. What they are doing up there is no less than a symphony of strategy and automation.
SPADEX mission enters a critical phase
The chaser and target satellites have been locked in a close-range rendezvous. After conducting a manually guided circumambulation weeks ago, they’re now testing full autonomy. This latest “dogfight” marks a turning point. ISRO Chairman Dr V Narayanan confirmed that India has “successfully demonstrated docking and undocking twice over”.
The satellites still carry 50 per cent of their fuel, the ISRO chief added. Thanks to smart launching and careful orbital planning, each satellite retains nearly 2.5 kilograms of fuel, extending their working life in orbit.
SPADEX’s latest achievement came on 20 April, when India docked its SDX-01 and SDX-02 satellites for the second time. This time, docking happened entirely on autopilot, from a 15-metre distance. In January, the first attempt involved a manual hold at 3 metres before docking. Lessons from that earlier mission shaped new ground simulations and on-orbit trials, building confidence for the second success.
Power transfer and praise for peaceful tech
On 21 April, a day after docking, power transfer was tested. Energy was sent from one satellite to another to heat a component. The operation lasted about four minutes and worked perfectly.
Brigadier (Retd) Anshuman Narang, space analyst and founder of think tank Atma Nirbhar Soch, praised the development. He called it a vital step for India’s space ambitions, saying it reflected “peaceful robotisation through advanced swadeshi technology”. He noted the importance of “intelligentisation and indigenisation” as India modernises space systems.
China, too, has tested similar orbital dogfights with multiple defence satellites in 2024. The US Space Force recently raised concerns, acknowledging that rivals are closing in on American capabilities.
India now joins an elite club. With the success of SPADEX, ISRO becomes only the fourth agency after Russia, the US and China to dock satellites in orbit. The mission, launched by PSLV on 30 December last year, is key to future projects like Chandrayaan-4 and the Bhartiya Antariksha Station.
The sky may not have borders, but India’s quiet confidence is now carving its own space path — one smart manoeuvre at a time.
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