The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is set to launch EOS-05 aboard the GSLV-F17 rocket on September 4, 2026, at 2:55 AM IST from the Second Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. EOS-05 will be India’s first Earth-observation imaging satellite operating from a geosynchronous orbit, enabling frequent and wide-area monitoring of the Indian subcontinent. The satellite is designed to provide rapid, repeated observations over large areas, making it particularly useful for tracking cyclones, floods, cloudbursts, forest fires and other natural disasters.
Its imagery could also support monitoring of changes in land and the environment, as well as strategic observation. The mission marks the 19th flight of the GSLV. EOS-05, also known as GISAT-1A, weighs about 2,367 kg and will initially be placed into a Sub-Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit before reaching its intended operational orbit. The launch also carries significance because it follows the 2021 failure of the earlier EOS-03/GISAT-1 mission, which was lost after a problem with the rocket’s cryogenic upper stage. EOS-05 is intended to revive the geostationary Earth-imaging capability envisioned through that earlier mission.
