ISRO’s GSLV-F18/NVS-03 mission is scheduled for launch at 11.51 p.m. on October 30 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
| Photo Credit: ANI
The Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F18) will launch the NVS-03 satellite from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on October 30.
The launch is scheduled to take place at 11.51 p.m. from the spaceport following which the GSLV-F18 vehicle will place the NVS-03 satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit.
The NVS-03 is the third satellite in the next generation navigation satellite system envisaged for providing continuity of navigation services for the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) series or the Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC).
ISRO said that the satellite carries an indigenous atomic clock, along with procured atomic clocks.
“It also includes L1 signal in addition to existing L5/S signals with coverage over India land mass and a region extending 1,500 km around Indian geopolitical boundary,” ISRO said.
NavIC is India’s independent regional navigation satellite system designed to provide accurate Position, Navigation and Timing (PNT) service to users in India as well as the region extending about 1,500 km beyond the Indian landmass, which is its primary service area.
The last satellite launched by ISRO as part of the NVS series was the NVS-02 on January 29, 2025, which was also the landmark 100th launch from Sriharikota. However, ISRO was not able to perform the intended orbit-raising operations for the NVS-02 satellite due to a valve malfunction.
The launch on October 30 will be the 20th flight of the GSLV and the third launch this year after the PSLV-C62 mission carrying the EOS-N1 earth observation satellite on January 12, 2026 and the EOS-05 aboard the GSLV-F17 on September 4.
With the October 30 launch, ISRO is hoping to revive the weakened NavIC system, which has been crippled by the failure of the last atomic clock aboard the IRNSS-1F satellite.
“On 13th March 2026, the procured on-board atomic clock stopped functioning. However, the satellite will continue to function in-orbit for various societal applications to provide one way broadcast messaging services. IRNSS-1F satellite launched in March 2016 has completed its design mission life of 10 years on 10th March 2026,” ISRO had said following the failure of the atomic clock.
Published – October 28, 2026 06:29 pm IST
