ISRO’s 101st launch, EOS-09 mission, scheduled for May 18

A picture taken at a meeting held by ISRO and JAXA for the Chandrayaan-5 mission, in Bengaluru on May 13 and 14.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all geared up for its 101st launch with the PSLV-C61 / EOS-09 mission, which is scheduled to be launched on May 18 at 5.59 a.m. from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

ISRO on Thursday (May 15, 2025) said the PSLV was moved from the Payload Integration Facility to the Mobile Service Tower at the spaceport in Sriharikota for further integration.

EOS-09 is an earth observation satellite which is expected to boost India’s surveillance capabilities in all-weather conditions. The satellite is equipped with C-band synthetic aperture radar enabling capturing of high-resolution images of the Earth’s surface under all-weather conditions 24/7.

Chandrayaan-5/LUPEX mission

ISRO and JAXA, the space agency of Japan, jointly conducted the third face-to-face Technical Interface Meeting (TIM-3), for the Chandrayaan-5/ Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) mission, in ISRO Headquarters, Bengaluru on May 13 and 14.

The meeting was attended by senior officials, project executives, and technical team members from ISRO, JAXA, and the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), Japan.

“Following the legacy of Chandrayaan-1, Chandrayaan-2 (orbiter-based lunar exploration), Chandrayaan-3 (lander-rover based in-situ exploration) and the forthcoming Chandrayaan-4 (India’s first lunar sample return mission), the Chandrayaan-5 / LUPEX mission will be the fifth mission in the Chandrayaan series of lunar missions, in collaboration with JAXA, to study the lunar volatile materials, including lunar water, in the vicinity of a Permanently Shadowed Region in the lunar south pole,” ISRO said.

The mission will be launched by JAXA onboard its H3-24L launch vehicle, carrying the ISRO-made lunar lander, which will carry the MHI, Japan-made lunar rover. ISRO, apart from developing the lunar lander, is also responsible for developing a few scientific instruments for the mission.

The scientific instruments for this mission would be contributed by ISRO, JAXA, ESA and NASA, all thematically connected with the exploration and in-situ analysis of the volatiles reserved in the lunar polar region.

The approval for the Chandrayaan-5 / LUPEX mission was received from the Government of India on March 10, 2025, in the form of financial sanction.