ISRO chairman V Narayanan has confirmed that India’s maiden human spaceflight mission ‘Gaganyaan’ is firmly on track for launch in 2027, while the country has set its sights on landing its own citizens on the Moon by 2040.

Alongside these milestones, India is also planning a national space station by 2035 and a Venus Orbiter Mission, signalling a comprehensive expansion of its space ambitions.

India’s space agency has outlined a clear roadmap that combines near-term human spaceflight with long-term planetary exploration. Narayanan explained that three uncrewed Gaganyaan missions will precede the crewed flight, with the first scheduled for December 2025.

This mission will carry the half-humanoid robot Vyommitra, designed to simulate human responses and test life-support systems in orbit. Two further uncrewed missions are planned for 2026, ensuring that all systems are validated before astronauts are launched.

The crewed Gaganyaan mission, targeted for the first quarter of 2027, will mark India’s entry into the select group of nations capable of independently sending humans into space.

The mission will involve three Indian astronauts orbiting Earth at approximately 400 kilometres altitude for several days before returning safely, with recovery operations led by the Indian Navy. The launch vehicle will be the human-rated LVM3, India’s most powerful rocket, adapted with advanced safety features including a crew escape system.

Narayanan emphasised that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a national guideline for an indigenous crewed lunar mission by 2040. This ambitious target requires India not only to land astronauts on the Moon but also to return them safely, a feat achieved so far only by the United States. 

The lunar mission will build upon the experience gained from Gaganyaan and India’s Chandrayaan series, including the Chandrayaan-3 success in 2023 which achieved a soft landing on the Moon’s south pole.

In addition to human spaceflight, Narayanan confirmed that India will establish the Bharatiya Antariksha Station by 2035. Initial modules are expected to be deployed in orbit by 2027, providing a stepping stone towards a permanent national space station. This facility will enable long-duration human presence in space, scientific experiments, and international collaborations.

India’s planetary exploration agenda is also expanding. A Venus Orbiter Mission has been approved to study the planet’s atmosphere and surface, complementing earlier missions such as Mangalyaan to Mars and Aditya-L1 to study the Sun. Narayanan noted that Aditya-L1 has already generated over 15 terabits of solar data, offering valuable insights into coronal mass ejections and space weather.

The ISRO chief highlighted that reforms in the space sector are fostering a vibrant ecosystem of start-ups and private enterprises.

These reforms are expected to accelerate innovation, reduce costs, and enhance India’s competitiveness in the global space market. Narayanan also mentioned upcoming projects such as Chandrayaan-4 and Chandrayaan-5, a new Mars mission, and AXOM, a high-priority astronomical observatory mission.

Narayanan’s statements underscore India’s determination to achieve technological self-reliance while remaining open to international collaboration in areas such as climate science and planetary research. He stressed that while self-reliance is the cornerstone of India’s space program, collaboration will be pursued strategically based on scientific and geopolitical priorities.

By setting clear timelines for Gaganyaan, the national space station, and the lunar mission, India is positioning itself as a rising space power. The combination of indigenous technology, rigorous testing, and ambitious goals reflects a national commitment to advancing human space exploration and scientific discovery.

PTI