National Space Day in India is celebrated on August 23 every year to mark the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon’s south pole in 2023. This historic achievement made India the first country in the world to accomplish such a feat, and the day now serves as a reminder of our nation’s incredible journey in space exploration.
The celebration honours not just this single mission, but the entire story of how India transformed from a newly independent nation with limited resources into a major space power that commands global respect.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently said that India is deeply committed to nurturing scientific curiosity and empowering young minds. “As we explore the universe, we must also ask how can space science further improve lives of people on Earth,” remarked Prime Minister Modi.
The roots of India’s space program trace back to 1962 when INCOSPAR, the Indian National Committee for Space Research, was established under the leadership of Dr Vikram Sarabhai, one of India’s greatest scientists.
He chose Thumba, a small fishing village in Kerala, as the launch site for India’s space ambitions. On November 21, 1963, scientists carried rocket parts on bicycles to the launch site, used a local church as their laboratory and the priest’s home as their mission office. That evening, India’s first rocket, a 715-kilogram NIKE-APACHE, soared into the sky and painted it orange with vapor clouds. Though the rocket was American-made with a French payload, this moment marked the beginning of India’s space journey.
In 1969, on Independence Day, INCOSPAR evolved into ISRO, the Indian Space Research Organization, which began pushing the boundaries of India’s space capabilities with greater structure and clarity. The first major milestone came in 1975 when ISRO launched Aryabhata, India’s first satellite, named after the famous Indian mathematician and astronomer. While it was launched by a Soviet rocket, the satellite was designed and built entirely by ISRO, proving that India could create sophisticated space technology despite limited resources.
The 1980s brought another historic moment when Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to travel to space in 1984. After undergoing grueling training that included learning Russian in just three months, surviving 72 hours in artificial light, and passing tests by Olympic trainers, Sharma spent over seven days in space as part of a joint mission with the Soviet Union. When asked how India looked from space, his reply, “Sare Jahan Se Accha,” became a moment of immense national pride, echoing the words of a legendary poem from the colonial era and sending a message to the world that India’s rise was inevitable.
The following decades saw ISRO develop its workhorse rockets, including the PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) and later the GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle). However, building advanced rockets required cryogenic engine technology, which uses liquid hydrogen and oxygen for greater thrust and efficiency. When attempts to acquire this technology from Japan, Europe, and Russia faced obstacles, and the United States imposed sanctions fearing military applications, India took the bold step of developing its own cryogenic engines in the early 2000s. This achievement demonstrated India’s determination to become self-reliant in space technology.
Critics, particularly in the West, often mocked India’s space ambitions, suggesting that a country with poverty should not dream of reaching the stars. Indian scientists gave them the perfect reply through achievements rather than arguments. In 2008, Chandrayaan-1, India’s first moon mission, not only successfully orbited the lunar surface but also became the first mission to confirm the presence of water in lunar soil, exciting scientists worldwide. This was followed by an even more ambitious project – the Mars Orbiter Mission, Mangalyaan, launched in 2013.
Mangalyaan made India the first country in Asia and the fourth in the world to reach Mars, succeeding on its very first attempt – something that no other nation had achieved at the time. “What made this even more remarkable was that India accomplished this feat for just $74 million, making it the cheapest interplanetary mission ever conducted anywhere in the world. To put this in perspective, the mission cost less per kilometer than an autorickshaw ride in Ahmedabad, and it was cheaper than many Hollywood space movies. This achievement should have inspired admiration, but instead, some Western media chose mockery, with The New York Times publishing a cartoon showing a farmer with a cow seeking entry to the “Elite Space Club.” The global outrage that followed forced the newspaper to apologize, but India remained focused on its goals rather than getting distracted by such negativity,” space analyst Girish Linganna told THE WEEK.
The momentum continued with Chandrayaan-2 in 2019, which achieved partial success, followed by the triumphant Chandrayaan-3 in 2023 that successfully soft-landed on the Moon’s south pole. This historic achievement, accomplished with a budget of just $75 million, made India the first nation to land on the lunar south pole and earned the country a permanent place in space exploration history. The same year, ISRO launched Aditya-L1, India’s first mission to study the Sun, positioning a spacecraft at the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point to observe solar winds, solar flares, and coronal mass ejections – crucial for protecting Earth’s satellites and communication systems.
In 2025, India celebrated another milestone when Shubhanshu Shukla became the second Indian astronaut to travel to space, 41 years after Rakesh Sharma. As part of the private Axiom Space Mission 4 launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Shukla carried the aspirations of 1.4 billion Indians to the International Space Station, with the entire nation watching and celebrating this achievement.
Praising the efforts of Shubhanshu Shukla, Science and Technology Minister Dr Jitendra Singh had recently said that the space experiments conducted by Shubhanshu Shukla present India as a Vishva Bandhu – a friend to the world. He had said that the ongoing space reforms and the space startup ecosystem are driving rapid growth in India’s $8-billion space economy. “Gaganyaan by 2027, an Indian space station by 2035, and a lunar landing by 2040 form part of the roadmap for a Viksit Bharat. Over 300 space startups are now contributing to the fast-growing Indian space economy. This is not just about an astronaut’s journey, it is about India’s role in the world and the dreams of every child who wishes to reach for the stars,” said Singh.
Today, India’s space industry is valued at $ 8.4 billion, representing about 2 per cent of the global space market, and the country is on track to capture 8 percent of the global market by 2033, growing its space economy to $44 billion. This transformation has been driven by strong government support, rapid technological innovation, ISRO’s research-focused approach, and the increasing involvement of private companies. The number of space startups in India has grown from fewer than 50 five years ago to more than 200 today, showing the explosive growth in this sector.
Looking ahead, India’s space program has ambitious plans that continue to push boundaries. Gaganyaan, the human spaceflight mission scheduled for 2027, will launch three crew members into orbit, marking India’s entry into human spaceflight capabilities. By 2035, India plans to establish its own space station called the Bhartiya Antariksh Station, and by 2040, there are plans to send an Indian astronaut to the Moon. These goals may seem ambitious, but given India’s track record of achieving the seemingly impossible with limited resources, they appear well within reach.
National Space Day serves as an annual reminder of this incredible journey from bicycle-carried rocket parts to lunar landings, from a small fishing village launch site to Mars missions, and from facing international sanctions to becoming a sought-after partner in global space endeavors. “The space day celebrates not just technological achievements but the spirit of innovation, determination, and frugal engineering that defines India’s approach to space exploration,” remarked Linganna. It demonstrates that space exploration does not require bottomless budgets but boundless ambition, and when a nation has the fire in its belly to achieve greatness, even the sky is not the limit. India’s space story continues to inspire millions and proves that with dedication, scientific temper, and unwavering resolve, any dream can be transformed into reality among the stars.
