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GSAT

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This article is about the Indian telecommunications and broadcasting satellites. For the navigation satellites, see Galileo navigation system. For the algorithm for propositional Boolean satisfiability, see WalkSAT. For the Taiwanese university entrance exam, see General Scholastic Ability Test.

Not to be confused with G Sat, a Philippine satellite television provider.

GSAT

The GSAT-7A, a military communications satellite, in deployed configuration

ManufacturerISRO
Country of originIndia
OperatorINSAT
ApplicationsCommunications
Specifications
RegimeGeostationary orbit
Production
StatusIn service
On order6
Built27
Launched27
Operational20
Retired3
Failed3
Lost1
Maiden launchGSAT-1 (GramSat-1) 18 April 2001
Last launchGSAT-7R (CMS-03) 2 November 2025

The GSAT (Geosynchronous Satellite)[1] series is a family of Indian communications satellites, indigenously developed and operated by the ISRO. The prorgamme was initiated in the early 2000s to create indigenous, multi-purpose, geostationary spacecrafts capable of supporting India's growing needs in telecommunications, broadcasting, broadband, emergency management, reconnaissance and navigation. The programme was supported by the development of Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle.

GSAT satellites include a total of 168 transponders (out of which 95 are leased out to provide services to broadcasters), and operate primarily in C, Extended C, Ku, Ka, S and L bands, with payload configurations tailored for civilian, commercial, and strategic needs. The development of both GSAT satellites and the GSLV launch system represents India's transition from dependence on foreign-built INSAT spacecraft to self-reliant national communications capability. As of 21 November 2025, 27 GSAT satellites manufactured by ISRO have been launched, out of which 20 are in service and six more being planned.

The GSAT programme began as part of ISRO's efforts to supplement the aging Indian National Satellite System (INSAT) fleet and reduce reliance on leased transponders from foreign satellites. Early missions of GSAT-1 (2001) and GSAT-2 (2003) were launched to test indigenous bus designs, power systems and communication payloads.

Between 2004 and 2020, ISRO launchd numerious GSAT satellites with varied roles including direct-to-home broadcasting support, tele-education and tele-medicine, high-throughput broadband, navigation augmentation for aviation, dedicated military communication.

Recent missions focus on high-bandwidth Ka band systems, secure strategic communication and navigation augmentation under GPS-aided GEO augmented navigation (GAGAN). Several satellites use advanced I-2K, I-3K and 1-6K satellite bus platforms designed for long life and high payload capacity.

The following is a list of launched GSAT satellites and their status. As of 2025, there were 27 GSAT launches with 20 of them being operational.

The following is a list of six planned GSAT launches.

As of 23 November 2025

2001

2005

2010

2015

2020

2025

2030

  •   Success
  •   Partial failure
  •   Failure
  •   Planned
  •   Ariane 5
  •   GSLV MKI
  •   GSLV MKII
  •   LVM3
  •   PSLV
  •   Falcon 9 Block 5
Country Launches Successes Failures Partial
failures
 France 12 12 0 0
 India 14 10 3 1
 United States 1 1 0 0
Total 27 23 3 1
Notes
  1. ^ Previously: 73° West (2000) and 99° West (2000–2006)
References
  1. ^ "ISRO GeoStationary Satellites". isro.org. Archived from the original on 11 February 2014.
  2. ^ "GSAT 1". NASA. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  3. ^ "GSAT 2". NASA. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  4. ^ "GSat 5 (Insat 4D)". Gunter's Space Page. 29 March 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2017.
  5. ^ "The second orbit raising operation of GSAT-6A satellite has been successfully carried out by LAM Engine firing for about 53 minutes on March 31, 2018 in the morning. - ISRO". Archived from the original on August 4, 2022. Retrieved April 5, 2018.
  6. ^ "GSAT 7". NASA. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  7. ^ Pubby, Manu (18 July 2019). "Navy to buy Rs 1,589 crore satellite from ISRO". Economic Times. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  8. ^ "GSAT 8". NASA. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  9. ^ "GSAT 10". NASA. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  10. ^ "GSAT 12". NASA. 16 August 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  11. ^ "Ariane 5 delivers DIRECTV-14 and GSAT-16 to orbit on Arianespace's latest mission success". Archived from the original on 11 December 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  12. ^ "Annual Report 2015-2016" (PDF). Indian Space Research Organisation. December 2015. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-07-05.
  13. ^ "GSAT-18 launched successfully on board Ariane-5 from Kourou in French Guiana". 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
  14. ^ "Now, ISRO successfully puts GSAT-19 satellite in orbit with GSLV Mk-III". The New Indian Express. 5 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  15. ^ "SpaceX launches communications satellite for India". mynews13.com. Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  16. ^ "SpaceX launches India's GSAT-N2 satellite on Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral – Spaceflight Now". Retrieved 2024-11-20.
  17. ^ "Falcon 9 Block 5 - GSAT-20". Next Spaceflight. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
  18. ^ "ISRO successfully launches the GSAT-29 satellite from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota on Wednesday". Bangalore Mirror. Nov 14, 2018. Retrieved 2025-11-21.
  19. ^ "India's communication satellite GSAT-30 launched successfully". ISRO. Archived from the original on 30 May 2020. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
  20. ^ "India's 40th Communication Satellite, GSAT-31, Launched". NDTV. Retrieved 6 February 2019.
  21. ^ "Military communication satellite for Indian Army approved". Deccen Herald. 22 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  22. ^ "Defence ministry clears proposal for GSAT-7C satellite for IAF: A look at other military satellites in India". Firstpost. 24 November 2021. Retrieved 24 November 2021.
  23. ^ a b c Kumar, Chethan (5 October 2021). "Space PSU NSIL to launch 4 more demand-driven communication satellites". The Times of India. Retrieved 8 October 2021.