Satellite navigation

GSLV launches NVS-03 navigation satellite into transfer orbit

The October 30 flight placed India’s third next-generation navigation satellite in its intended orbit. Commissioning and entry into navigation service remain unconfirmed.

31 October 2026 at 9:58 am ISTBy Launch Desk1 min read

Updated 31 October 2026 at 9:58 am IST: This report adds the completed launch and transfer-orbit placement to our October 29 coverage of the launch schedule and countdown preparations.

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GSLV-F18 lifts off from Sriharikota carrying NVS-03 on October 30, 2026, in a photograph published in ISRO’s mission gallery. Credit: ISRO.

India’s NVS-03 navigation satellite is in its intended geosynchronous transfer orbit following the October 30, 2026, GSLV-F18 launch. ISRO’s updated mission page records successful placement; Space.com’s launch report also documents the flight and deployment.

The rocket lifted off at 11:51 p.m. Indian Standard Time on October 30 — 18:21 UTC — from Sriharikota, Space.com reports. ISRO identifies the launch site as the Second Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

NVS-03 is the third satellite in India’s next-generation navigation series. ISRO describes its intended coverage as India and a region extending 1,500 kilometres beyond the country’s boundary. The spacecraft carries an Indian atomic clock alongside procured clocks and adds an L1 navigation signal to the existing L5 and S-band signals.

The completed launch advances beyond the schedule and countdown preparations in our October 29 report. That article described a prospective flight and did not establish an orbital outcome.

Space.com identifies commissioning and checkout as work ahead. The reviewed ISRO mission page and launch report do not announce entry into navigation service or give a date for that step.

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