ISRO's GSLV-F17 rocket placed the geostationary Earth-observation satellite GISAT-1A into orbit, ending a near seven-month pause in Indian launches since a January failure.

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• ISRO launched GISAT-1A, also designated EOS-05, aboard the GSLV-F17 rocket from the Second Launch Pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
• The mission ended a nearly seven-month operational pause for ISRO, following the failure of the PSLV-C62/EOS-N1 mission on January 12, 2026.
• GSLV-F17 was the 19th flight of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle and initially placed the satellite into a Sub-Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit.
• GISAT-1A is the second satellite in ISRO's GISAT series and weighs 2,367 kg, built on the I-2K satellite bus.
• It replaces GISAT-1, or EOS-03, which was lost in August 2021 after the GSLV-F10 rocket's final propulsive stage failed to ignite.
• The satellite will operate from a geostationary orbit roughly 36,000 km above Earth, remaining fixed over the Indian subcontinent.
• Unlike low Earth orbit satellites that pass overhead once or twice a day, GISAT-1A can repeatedly image the same ground area through the day.
• Its named applications include disaster monitoring, agriculture and forestry, where tracking rapid change matters more than high-resolution mapping.
• GISAT-1A has a planned mission life of ten years and is designed for high-frequency imaging of large areas of the Indian landmass.
• The successful flight also validates the reliability of the GSLV Mk-II and its cryogenic upper stage, ahead of future missions including NavIC and Gaganyaan.