The rocket – named Blacklift – is designed for reusability, leveraging an engine architecture with over a decade of development and proven flight heritage, enabling up to five BlueBird satellites per launch

Starting in late 2028, the use of the Blacklift rocket will complete AST SpaceMobile’s end-to-end vertical integration and ensure regular unconstrained access to orbit with most favorable owners’ economics in the industry

AST SpaceMobile will also continue to use external launch providers, with agreements now covering in total over 100 BlueBird satellites expected to be deployed cumulatively between 2027 and 2028

Jack Congram article: https://www.china-in-space.com/p/new-yaogan-satellite-trio-launched

NextSpaceflight page: https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/8450/

In late 2022, the three Carlisles founded Argo Space to build infrastructure in space. Their vision was not just in-space transportation but also removing the need to use propellants from Earth to move around the heavens. They chose water, which is potentially harvestable on the Moon and found all over the Solar System, as a means of propulsion.

The propulsion system is basically a small rocket that uses hydrogen and oxygen as propellants. However, instead of launching with separate tanks of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, Chiron starts with liquid water. In space, the vehicle uses solar power to split water into hydrogen and oxygen gases and burns them to generate thrust.

Jack Congram article: https://www.china-in-space.com/p/cas-space-delivers-qianfan-satellites

NextSpaceflight page: https://nextspaceflight.com/launches/details/8447/

Sucks to suck

Figure from paper

Fig. 2: Six maps for different spacecraft at different altitudes taken with PODRIX receivers. The colors indicate the avg. percentage of measurements in each cell marked as jammed. Data from 1 January to 31 May 2026.

Mission info

| Scheduled for (UTC) | 2026-10-30, 18:21 | |

|

| | Scheduled for (local) | 2025-10-30, 23:51 (IST) | | Launch site | Second Launch Pad, Satish Dhawan Space Centre, India | | Launch Vehicle | GSLV Mark II | | Payload | NVS-03 (IRNSS-1L) | | Payload mass | 2,250 kg | | Target Orbit | Geostationary Transfer Orbit |

GSLV Mark II consists of:

• Four L40 Hs boosters: (N2O4 / UDMH)
• Stage 1: HTPB (Hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene)
• Stage 2: (N2O4 / UDMH)
• Stage 3: (LOX / LH2)

Webcasts

| Stream | Link | |

|

| | ISRO | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIiYr3tRSqE | Space Affairs | https://www.youtube.com/@Space-Affairs/streams | International Rocket Launches | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7QKKDJlqLY | The Launch Pad | https://www.youtube.com/@TheLaunchPad/streams

Stats

Sourced from NextSpaceflight:

☑️ 2nd GSLV mission of 2026, 20th overall

☑️ 3rd ISRO mission this year, 104rd overall

Mission details

• ISRO mission page
• NextSpaceflight mission page

NVS-03 (IRNSS-1L)

The NVS, previously IRNSS, constellation is not a global positioning constellation, like GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, or Beidou-3, but a regional one, similar to the Chinese Beidou-1 and 2, or the Japanese QZSS, serving only the Indian sub-continent. IRNSS satellites have two payloads: a navigation payload and CDMA ranging payload in addition to a laser retro-reflector. The payload generates navigation signals at L5 and S-band. The design of the payload makes the IRNSS system interoperable and compatible with Global Positioning System (GPS) and Galileo systems. The satellite is powered by two solar arrays, which generate up to 1,660 watts, and has a lifetime of ten years.