India and US, in a joint mission are going to launch the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota which will image the global land and ice-covered surfaces, including islands, sea-ice and selected oceans every 12 days.
NISAR mission’s primary objective is to study land & ice deformation, land ecosystems, and oceanic regions in areas of common interest to the US and Indian science communities.
This is the biggest collaboration to date between India and the US. NASA has contributed the L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), a high-rate telecommunication subsystem, GPS receivers, and a deployable 12-meter unfurlable antenna. ISRO, on its part, has provided the S-Band SAR payload, the spacecraft bus to accommodate both payloads, the GSLV-F16 launch vehicle, and all associated launch services.
The data acquired through S-band and L-band SAR from a single platform will help the scientists to understand the changes happening to planet Earth.
“This will help to measure the woody biomass and its changes track changes in the extent of active crops understand that changes in wetlands extent map Greenland’s & Antarctica’s ice sheets, dynamics of sea ice and mountain glaciers characterize land surface deformation related to seismicity, volcanism, landslides, and subsidence & uplift associated with changes in subsurface aquifers, hydrocarbon reservoirs among others,” ISRO stated.
NISAR exemplifies the potential of India – US partnership to harness strong convergences in the strategic and scientific realms, towards enhancing prosperity of the two countries and beyond. It also underlines the ability of the scientific communities of the two countries to deliver outcomes for the people through mutual collaboration and sustained engagement.
Earlier this year, a NASA-ISRO effort through AXIOM realized sending the first Indian astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS). Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla visited the International Space Station (ISS) from 25 June to 15 July 2025 In February 2025, PM Modi and President Donald Trump also called for more collaboration in space exploration, including on long duration human spaceflight missions, spaceflight safety and sharing of expertise and professional exchanges in emerging areas, including planetary protection.
