Bengaluru: India has committed to achieving debris-free space missions by 2030 to enable sustainable space exploration. The announcement was made by the Chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), S. Somanath, during the 42nd Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) annual meeting held on April 16.
The goal is to ensure that within the next ten years all Indian space organisations, government and private, conduct space missions without creating debris. Somanath said, “India encourages all state space actors to follow this initiative for long-term sustainability of outer space.”
ISRO currently has 54 spacecraft in orbit, along with non-functional objects Somanath informed, stating that the agency is taking a proactive approach to “dispose of or remove the space objects once its active role is over to de-orbit, and bring it to a safe location.”
With plans to launch its space station, the ‘Bharatiya Antariksha Station,’ by 2035, ISRO wants agreements with space stations and actors, including private entities. The organisation also wants to ensure that the space is sustainable, avoiding the propagation of activities that create more debris, thereby continuing space exploration in the future.
