Archive · 18 Aug 2026
ISRO Says Docking Technology Will Enable Moon Samples, Space Station
India’s space agency says docking spacecraft together will be very important in the future.
One possible mission would collect rocks or soil from the Moon and bring them back to Earth.
A lander could carry the sample to an orbiter circling the Moon.
The lander and orbiter would connect, or dock, before the sample began its journey home.
Docking will also help India build its planned space station.
The station is expected to have five modules that connect to one another.
ISRO is also working on human spaceflight through the Gaganyaan mission.
Officials urged students to help India develop new space technology.
ISRO official M R Raghavendra said docking technology will support future lunar sample-return missions.
A proposed sample-return mission would involve a lander docking with a lunar orbiter before returning samples to Earth.
Docking will be needed to assemble India’s planned five-module Bharatiya Antariksh Station.
Raghavendra discussed Gaganyaan, the Bharatiya Antariksh Station and opportunities from private participation in India’s space sector.
The event highlighted Chandrayaan-3’s 2023 soft landing and India’s National Space Day celebrations.
- Who
- M R Raghavendra, Director of ISRO’s Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network, spoke about the plans; ISRO is developing the relevant technologies.
- What
- ISRO said docking technology will be important for lunar sample return, human missions and assembling the Bharatiya Antariksh Station.
- When
- The remarks were made on a Tuesday during a National Space Day programme connected with the 2026 celebrations; Chandrayaan-3 landed on August 23, 2023.
- Where
- At a National Space Day event organised at City Montessori School’s Gomtinagar-1 campus in Lucknow.
- Why
- Docking would allow spacecraft and station modules to connect, enabling lunar samples to be transferred and future human-space missions to be conducted.
- Speaker
- M R Raghavendra, Director of ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network, Bengaluru
- Lunar sample return
- A proposed mission could use a lander, lunar orbiter and docking operation to return samples to Earth.
- Planned space station
- The Bharatiya Antariksh Station is expected to use five modules, each requiring docking.
- Human spaceflight
- ISRO is developing the Gaganyaan mission and the Bharatiya Antariksh Station.
- Chandrayaan-3
- The Vikram lander made a soft lunar landing in 2023, and the Pragyan rover was deployed afterward.
- National Space Day
- August 23 was declared National Space Day after the Chandrayaan-3 landing.
- 2026 theme
- “Towards Viksit Bharat: Innovating, Collaborating, and Aspiring to Global Space Leadership”