Gaganyaan set to launch in 2027: ISRO chief reveals India's manned space mission timeline

New Delhi (The Uttam Hindu): The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has made a major announcement regarding its future missions. ISRO chief V. Narayanan said on Wednesday that the agency has set an ambitious goal of landing an Indian on the lunar surface by 2040. This announcement marks a new era in India's space program.

Narayanan also clarified that India's first manned space mission, Gaganyaan, will be launched in 2027. Prior to this historic mission, ISRO will also launch three unmanned Gaganyaan missions. The first of these missions, expected to launch in December 2025, will send a semi-humanoid robot named Vyommitra into space.

Citing the guidelines set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the ISRO chief said, "The Prime Minister has given the target of an indigenous manned lunar mission by 2040, under which we will have to land our citizens on the Moon and also bring them back safely."

Furthermore, India plans to establish its own space station by 2035. Narayanan also informed that a Venus Orbiter Mission (VOM) has been approved to study the planet Venus, which will further strengthen India's interplanetary missions.