80 years of Independence: From Mangalyaan to Chandrayaan-3, India’s rise as a space power

India is amongst the fastest growing economies in the world. In fact it is the sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP, with an estimated size of around $4.15 trillion. When measured by Purchasing Power Parity (PPP), India stands much higher at the third place globally, trailing only the United States and China.

Similarly, India has grown by leaps and bounds in the field of science and technology since gaining Independence on August 15, 1947 from the British rule.

According to the global ranking, India stands 3rd in scientific publications and ranks 38th in the Global Innovation Index. The country has rapidly scaled its research output, patent filings, and high-impact contributions across global science, technology, and innovation frameworks.

One of India's most visible scientific achievements has been its space programme, led by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Here we take a look at some of the developments and achievements made in Space Science in last two decades made by India.

From 2006 to 2026, India has shown exceptional growth like undertaking lunar, Martian, solar, astronomical and deep-space missions and demonstrating advanced technologies such as autonomous satellite docking.

Chandrayaan-1: India Reaches the Moon — 2008

A major turning point for India to prove its capabilities in Space Science came on 22 October 2008, when it launched Chandrayaan-1, India's first mission to the Moon, carried 11 scientific instruments from India and international partners.

Other than mapping Moon's chemical, mineralogical and geological characteristics, Chandrayaan-1 detected evidence of hydration/water-related signatures on the lunar surface and near-surface environment.

The mission demonstrated that India could conduct sophisticated planetary science too and that its capabilities are not limited to merely launching communication and Earth-observation satellites.

Mars Orbiter Mission - 2013

On 5 November 2013, ISRO launched the Mars Orbiter Mission or Mangalyaan and became the fourth space agency to successfully place a spacecraft in Mars orbit.

The mission was designed for six months but completed seven years in Mars orbit. During its mission the spacecraft studied aspects of the Martian surface, atmosphere, morphology, mineralogy and the Martian exosphere. Also its Mars Colour Camera produced more than 1,100 images for study.

Multi-Wavelength Astronomy — 2015

On 28 September 2015 India launched Astrostat, an astronomical observatory designed to study celestial objects in multiple wavelengths.

It has helped Indian scientists to investigate phenomena involving stars; galaxies; X-ray sources; black holes; neutron stars and high-energy astronomical events.

Chandrayaan-2 in 2019

India launched Chandrayaan-2 on 22 July 2019. The mission consisted of an orbiter, lander and rover. Although the lander did not achieve a successful soft landing, the orbiter continued operating and producing valuable scientific data.

Chandrayaan-3: Historic Lunar Landing — 2023

On 23 August 2023, Chandrayaan-3 successfully soft-landed on the Moon. With this India became the first country to land in the Moon's southern high-latitude region and only the fourth country to achieve a soft landing on the Moon.

The Vikram lander and Pragyan rover conducted scientific experiments on the lunar surface for more than 14 Earth days.