The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has achieved another milestone by successfully docking the SpaDeX (Space Docking Experiment) satellites in space orbit. This landmark positions India as the fourth among the few nations capable of performing autonomous docking in space, as well as rendezvous and undocking capabilities.

The docking exercise took place in the early hours of January 16, 2025. It was seen as a delicate dance between the two satellites, with the chaser aligning with the target satellite in a tango mastered by Indian Space Agency's engineers.

The mission known as SpaDeX involves two satellites, SDX01 (chaser) and SDX02 (target), each weighing about 220 kg as they lined up together for docking on their way through the cold of space.

"Manoeuvre from 15m to 3m hold point completed. Docking initiated with precision, leading to successful spacecraft capture. Retraction completed smoothly, followed by rigidisation for stability. Docking successfully completed," Isro updated. 

The satellites were launched on December 30, 2024, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, mounted on the PSLV C60 rocket. They were placed in a 475-kilometer circular orbit in the initial stage. After a series of manoeuvres, they successfully bridged the gap from a distance of 1.5 kilometres to just 3 meters before successfully achieving docking.

Initially, ISRO had scheduled the docking for 7^th January and the postponed it to 9^th January, due to technical challenges. The Indian Space Agency then attempted a docking on January 11, but it was cancelled shortly before docking. Nevertheless, with detailed assessment and coordination, the agency affirmed that both satellites were in good condition and prepared for the docking process. The triumphant handshake is being praised as a huge step forward for India's space exploration goals.

This epic docking has placed India among the world leaders in space technology. This successful demo of autonomous docking is essential for coming missions, which include lunar exploration and the construction of the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BSS).

The SpaDeX mission underscores ISRO's engineering prowess and symbolises India's rising ambitions in space. With this groundbreaking achievement, India has joined an elite group of countries, including the United States, Russia and China, that have mastered docking technology in space.

This ability is critical for complicated missions that require numerous spacecraft to work together, opening the path for India's future efforts in deep space exploration and possible crewed trips to the Moon by 2040.

This exemplary docking experiment also paves the way for the Chandrayaan-4 mission, which will be performed in numerous stages and technically challenging. The mission would involve docking above the Moon to bring back rocks and soil samples from the lunar surface.