SRIHARIKOTA: The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) successfully launched EOS-05, India’s first imaging satellite designed to operate from a geosynchronous orbit, aboard GSLV-F17 in the early hours of Friday.The 51.7-metre-tall, 420.5-tonne, three-stage rocket lifted off from the second launch pad at Sriharikota at 2.55am and placed the around 2,367kg Earth observation satellite in its intended sub-geosynchronous transfer orbit.This was the 19th GSLV flight. GSLV-F17 had a S139 solid core with four L40H liquid strap-ons, a GL40HT liquid second stage and a CUS15 indigenous cryogenic upper stage, besides a four-metre composite ogive payload fairing.EOS-05 was injected into a geosynchronous transfer orbit. It will eventually achieve a nominal perigee of 170km, apogee of 28,934km and inclination of 19.28 degrees. The satellite will be moved to the final orbit through a series of manoeuvres using onboard thrusters
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India had 21 operational Earth observation satellites as of February 2026. Of these, most are in low-Earth or sun-synchronous polar orbits, while India’s geostationary-orbit Earth observation capability is currently represented by the meteorological satellites INSAT-3D, INSAT-3DR and INSAT-3DS. EOS-05 is India’s first imaging satellite to operate from geosynchronous orbit.The launch was the first GSLV mission since GSLV-F16 successfully placed the joint Nasa-Isro NISAR Earth observation satellite in a 743km sun-synchronous orbit on July 30, 2025. Friday’s launch was Isro’s second orbital mission of 2026. The first, PSLV-C62 carrying EOS-N1 and other payloads on Jan 12, failed following an anomaly towards the end of the rocket’s third-stage flight.
