ISRO completes first IADT-1 test for Gaganyaan mission

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully completed the first Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-1) under the Gaganyaan mission, which is an important step in the preparations for the country’s first human spaceflight program.

• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully completed its first Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-1), which is an important milestone in the preparations for the country’s first human spaceflight program, Gaganyaan, on August 24, 2025, at Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.
• IADT is a special test aimed at ensuring that the parachute system designed for the Gaganyaan crew module works reliably under real-world conditions.

Test process

• During the test, a dummy crew capsule weighing about five tons was lifted into the air by a Chinook helicopter before being dropped. As it descended several kilometers, its main parachutes opened in a specific sequence to bring the capsule to a safe splashdown speed and land it successfully.
• The first human spaceflight is expected to take place before 2026. The success of the Gaganyaan mission will place India among the exclusive group of countries (the USA, Russia, and China) with human spaceflight capability.
• A modified version of ISRO’s most reliable rocket, LVM3 (formerly called Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk III), is the launch vehicle for the Gaganyaan mission.

Gaganyaan

• Gaganyaan is India’s ambitious space mission, under which a three-member crew will be sent into low Earth orbit (LEO) at an altitude of about 400 kilometers for three days and then brought back safely to Earth.
• To make this program successful, the Government of India has approved two unmanned and one manned mission. The first manned flight is likely to take place before 2026.
• Before its first unmanned mission, named G1, the construction of the “C32-G stage and CES motors” has been completed.

Announcement of the Gaganyaan mission

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally announced it during his Independence Day address to the nation in 2018. The Gaganyaan program was approved by the Union Cabinet on December 28, 2018.

Vyommitra

• ISRO’s Thiruvananthapuram unit has developed a humanoid robot ‘Vyommitra’ for the Gaganyaan mission. It is made of high-strength aluminum alloy, which can withstand pressure and vibration.
• In 2025, before sending astronauts for the Gaganyaan mission, ISRO will send the humanoid robot Vyommitra into space to test the safety of the spacecraft.