ISRO just wrapped up 2025 with a massive “Baahubali” flex.1 On Wednesday, December 24, 2025, the LVM3-M6 rocket successfully hauled the BlueBird-6 satellite into orbit.2
The thing is, this wasn’t just another launch. We’re talking about a 6,100 kg beast from the US-based AST SpaceMobile.3 It’s officially the heaviest commercial payload ever launched from Indian soil.4 Indian Ambassador to the U.S., Vinay Mohan Kwatra, summed it up perfectly: “We couldn’t have ended 2025… in a better way.” Or nothing. Let’s be real, this proves ISRO isn’t just the “budget” option anymore; it’s a heavy-lift heavyweight.5 Those too.
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2025: The Year of India-US Space Dominance
Ambassador Kwatra noted that this launch “caps a series of achievements” that have turned 2025 into a landmark year for the Washington-Delhi partnership.
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The ISS Milestone: In July 2025, Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla made history on the Axiom-4 mission, spending 18 days on the International Space Station.6 He was the first ISRO astronaut there.7
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NISAR is Live: The NASA-ISRO NISAR satellite—a $1.5 billion project—is now operational, scanning the Earth’s crust with dual-frequency radar.8
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The “Baahubali” Record: This LVM3 mission was actually the rocket’s second flight in just 52 days (following the CMS-03 launch in November), showing a “turnaround” speed we haven’t seen before.9
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The “Atmanirbharta” Scorecard
| Milestone | Detail | Impact |
| Heaviest Payload | 6,100 kg (BlueBird-6) | Confirms LVM3 as a global heavy-lift contender. |
| Global Trust | 434 satellites for 34 countries | Solidifies India as a reliable “space taxi.” |
| Direct-to-Cell | Space-based 5G | BlueBird-6 will beam broadband directly to your phone. |
The “Kicker”: 2026 is Looking Bigger
And here’s the kicker: Kwatra mentioned that this success is just the “foundation stone” for next year. With the SPADEX docking mission already a success in early 2025, the path is now clear for Chandrayaan-4 and India’s own space station, the Bharatiya Antariksh Station (BAS).10
It’s an ongoing situation where ISRO is shifting from “exploration” to “integration.” They aren’t just building rockets; they’re building a supply chain that even the Americans are starting to rely on. If you thought 2025 was busy, 2026 is when we likely see the first unmanned Gaganyaan orbital test.
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