Stories
From PSLV to LVM3: How India Built Powerful Rockets to Reach the Moon
- •India's journey to the Moon relied on decades of continuous learning and evolution in rocket launch technology.
- •First launched in 1993, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) became India's reliable workhorse for Earth-observation and interplanetary missions like Chandrayaan-1.
- •To support heavier communication satellites and deep space exploration, India developed the LVM3, capable of carrying much larger payloads.
- •LVM3 played a historic role in India's lunar program by successfully launching Chandrayaan-2 and the historic Chandrayaan-3 mission.
- •India continues to advance its propulsion and launch technology in preparation for future human spaceflight and deeper lunar missions.
Key Questions Answered
First launched in 1993, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) serves as India's workhorse for injecting satellites into various Earth orbits and has been synonymous with Earth-observation, navigation, and commercial satellite missions. It also contributed significantly to interplanetary endeavors such as Chandrayaan-1 and the Mars Orbiter Mission.
India developed the LVM3—initially called the GSLV Mk III—to lift heavier payloads required for communication satellites and deep space missions that the PSLV could not accommodate. The heavy-lift vehicle weighs approximately 640 tonnes, stands roughly 43.5 meters tall, and features two large solid boosters, a liquid-fuel core stage, and a cryogenic upper stage.
The LVM3 proved critical for India's lunar aspirations by launching the Chandrayaan-2 mission toward the moon in 2019. It subsequently launched Chandrayaan-3 on July 14, 2023, successfully landing the spacecraft near the Moon's south pole in a historic event that highlighted India's growing heavy-launch capabilities.
