Bengaluru-based space technology startup GalaxEye announced on Tuesday, 7 July 2025 that its maiden Mission Drishti — the world's first OptoSAR satellite — has successfully validated critical technologies and mission capabilities, clearing the path for the launch of two next-generation OptoSAR satellites within the next 24 months. The announcement comes despite the spacecraft suffering an anomaly following a geomagnetic solar storm that ultimately led to a loss of communication.

What Mission Drishti Achieved

Launched aboard a SpaceX mission on 3 May 2025, Mission Drishti successfully established communication and completed a major portion of its Launch and Early Orbit Phase (LEOP). The satellite validated critical spacecraft systems including deployment mechanisms, attitude control, onboard computing, and communications infrastructure.

The mission also demonstrated GalaxEye's full in-house mission operations capability through its Mission Control Centre in Bengaluru, reinforcing the company's technological standing and market credibility. During its operational phase, the satellite validated the processes and infrastructure required to design, build, launch, and operate advanced Earth observation systems.

The Anomaly and Its Cause

GalaxEye confirmed that the spacecraft encountered an anomaly during the final stage of LEOP following an extreme geomagnetic solar storm. Preliminary analysis indicates that radiation from the space weather event likely affected a critical onboard system, causing communication to become intermittent before being lost entirely.

The company stated that recovery efforts are ongoing, but acknowledged that the likelihood of restoring contact currently appears low. Notably, this is the kind of space weather risk that even established satellite operators have grappled with — the May 2024 geomagnetic storm was among the most powerful in two decades and disrupted multiple low-Earth orbit missions globally.

What the CEO Said

Suyash Singh, Founder and CEO of GalaxEye, said the mission represents the culmination of years of engineering effort. 'Mission Drishti marks the culmination of years of innovation, engineering and execution by our team. While the satellite experienced an anomaly following an extreme space weather event, the mission has provided invaluable engineering insights that will directly strengthen our future missions,' Singh said.

Singh added that the company is accelerating the transition towards bringing a significant portion of its supply chain, manufacturing, and satellite development processes in-house to gain greater visibility and control over the entire value chain.

The Road Ahead: Two New Satellites

Building on the lessons from Mission Drishti, GalaxEye said it is incorporating the learnings into its next-generation spacecraft architecture. The company plans to launch two new OptoSAR satellites within 24 months, while significantly expanding in-house capabilities to strengthen quality, reliability, and execution.

The mission also drew recognition from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and industry leaders, underscoring its significance for India's private space ecosystem and global Earth observation capabilities. This comes amid a broader acceleration in India's commercial space sector following the liberalisation of the space policy framework in recent years.

With the next two satellites incorporating hard-won engineering data from Mission Drishti, GalaxEye's OptoSAR programme — which fuses optical and synthetic aperture radar imaging — is now positioned to move from proof-of-concept to operational deployment.