India’s navigation satellite tv for pc system suffers main setback: 1 of 4 operational IRNSS satellites fails | India Information
India’s indigenous navigation satellite tv for pc system—Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC)—has suffered a significant setback with one in every of its 4 operational satellites reporting a failure “on the finish of 10 years since its launch”, in keeping with Indian Area Analysis Organisation (Isro) officers.
The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite tv for pc System’s IRNSS 1-F, launched on March 10, 2016, failed after its final purposeful atomic clock malfunctioned, house division sources indicated. The satellite tv for pc had been working with solely one in every of its three onboard atomic clocks.
No less than 4 indigenous navigation satellites have to be totally operational for the NavIC system to supply navigation companies to the general public and authorities companies comparable to railways and the navy.
Senior ISRO officers related to the NavIC satellites and the house programme didn’t reply to queries on the failure of the IRNSS 1F satellite tv for pc. Isro chairman Dr V Narayanan didn’t communicate on the difficulty however referred to an official assertion posted on its web site.
“On thirteenth March 2026, the procured on-board atomic clock stopped functioning. Nevertheless, the satellite tv for pc will proceed to perform in-orbit for varied societal purposes to supply a technique broadcast messaging companies,” Isro mentioned in an official assertion on Friday evening.
“IRNSS-1F satellite tv for pc launched in March 2016 has accomplished its design mission lifetime of 10 years on tenth March 2026,” the assertion posted on the Isro web site mentioned.
Though Isro has launched 11 satellites since July 2013 for the almost Rs 2,250 crore NavIC system, six satellites have failed primarily because of faulty imported atomic clocks within the preliminary years, and on a number of latest events, because of orbital points.
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Final yr, in a reply in Parliament, the Union authorities had reported that solely 4 of 11 satellites launched for the NavIC system have been operational for positioning, navigation, and timing companies, with the others getting used on a sub-optimal foundation.
“As of now, 11 satellites have been put in orbit. A few of them should not functioning. At current, 4 satellites are offering Place, Navigation and Timing (PNT) companies, 4 satellites are getting used for a technique message broadcast, one satellite tv for pc bought decommissioned after its end-of-life service. Two satellites couldn’t attain the supposed orbit,” Minister of State for the PMO, Jitendra Singh, mentioned in a reply within the Lok Sabha on July 23, 2025.
With the reported failure of the IRNSS 1-F, the purposeful NavIC satellites for PNT companies at current are solely the IRNSS 1-B, IRNSS 1-L, and IRNSS 1-J (NVS-01). With the reported failure of all atomic clocks on the IRNSS 1-F, a complete of six of 11 Indian satellites meant for the NavIC system have failed as a result of atomic clocks.
“Location companies supplied by the NavIC system in India are going to be affected,” house division sources mentioned.
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Final yr, within the July 23 reply in Parliament, the Union authorities had said that “round 12,000 trains are focused for monitoring in real-time utilizing NavIC and different GNSS constellations” and that “round 8,700 trains are already geared up with NavIC together with different GNSS constellations”.
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Earlier failures of NavIC satellites
Aside from the newest incident, 5 satellites launched for the NavIC system have skilled atomic clock failures: IRNSS-1A (launched on July 1, 2013), IRNSS-1C (October 16, 2014), IRNSS-1D (March 28, 2015), IRNSS-1E (January 20, 2016), and IRNSS-1G (April 28, 2016).
Correct time retaining lies on the coronary heart of navigation techniques because the willpower of an individual’s place on earth is topic to the correct calculation of delays in sign transmission from satellite tv for pc to earth.
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Small errors in atomic clocks on satellites can skew place information by a number of hundred kilometres. Isro by the way began work on the IRNSS program in 1999 after the Kargil conflict, the place Indian defence forces couldn’t use US-owned GPS techniques to supply locational help to its troopers within the battle zone.
Isro admitted in July 2016 that IRNSS 1A had developed issues because of malfunctioning atomic clocks and indicated that alternative satellites could be launched with modified clocks.
The atomic clocks within the IRNSS satellites launched after July 2016 (IRNSS 1H, 1-I) have carried modified variations of the unique clocks supplied by an European provider underneath a $ 4 million euro deal for an estimated 45 clocks (three clocks are current on every satellite tv for pc).
The IRNSS 1-J, which is presently operational, and the IRNSS 1-Okay, which reported an engine failure final yr, are additionally referred to as NVS-01 and NVS-02 satellites on account of being a second era of IRNSS navigation satellites which might be geared up with a mixture of indigenous and overseas atomic clocks.
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Although a seven-satellite constellation is taken into account very best for the NavIC system, 4 totally operational satellites are additionally thought of to be ample to supply navigation companies. “To offer an answer for place navigation and timing, solely 4 satellites are wanted—for timing, just one satellite tv for pc is ample, and for place navigation, 4 satellites are ample. So we do have an indigenous resolution by the IRNSS constellation at current,” the spacecraft director for the NVS-02 mission, Kartik A, had mentioned on January 29, 2025, quickly after the launch of the IRNSS 1-Okay (NVS-02), which didn’t obtain an optimum orbit location.
Satellites failing to succeed in optimum orbits
Two satellites—the IRNSS 1-H launched on August 31, 2017, and the IRNSS 1-Okay (NVS-02) launched on January 29, 2025—have had issues on account of not reaching their optimum orbits after launch.
On February 25, 2026, almost a yr after the failure of the IRNSS 1-Okay satellite tv for pc orbit manoeuvres, Isro launched a public assertion on the findings of a failure evaluation train. “On separation of the satellite tv for pc from the launch car, a collection of autonomous actions on the satellite tv for pc have been carried out together with the photo voltaic panel deployment and stabilizing the orientation for energy era. Nevertheless, the orbit elevating operations from the elliptical to round orbit couldn’t be carried out,” the assertion mentioned.
“The apex committee after thorough evaluation of the simulation information concluded that the prime motive for the remark was discovered to be the drive sign not reaching the pyro valve of the oxidizer line of the engine meant for orbit elevating. The committee concluded that the almost certainly trigger for the remark is the disengagement of not less than one contact (in every of the primary and redundant paths) of the connector,” the assertion added.
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Isro has additionally suffered two successive launch failures within the 2025-26 interval for its workhorse PSLV rocket, leading to an total stalling of the launch pipeline for house programmes, together with the NavIC satellite tv for pc programme.
“The PSLV-C62 mission encountered an anomaly in the course of the finish of the PS3 stage. An in depth evaluation has been initiated,” Isro mentioned concerning the PSLV C62 launch failure on January 12, 2026. “A nationwide stage skilled committee constituted is reviewing the explanation for anomaly in PSLV Automobile,” Isro mentioned in one other assertion on February 25, 2026.
The Union minister of state for house had said in Parliament in July 2025 {that a} new era NavIC satellite tv for pc “NVS-03 is deliberate to be launched by finish of 2025” and “subsequently, with a spot of six months, NVS-04 & NVS-05 are deliberate to be launched”. However these timelines haven’t been realised after the launch failures for the PSLV C61 on Could 18, 2025, and the PSLC C62 launch on January 12, 2026.
Isro plans to launch three second-generation NavIC satellites—NVS-03/04/05—sooner or later “to enhance NavIC base layer constellation with enhanced options for making certain continuity of companies”.