Bharatiya Antariksha Station by 2030, presence on Moon by 2040: Somnath reveals ISRO goals at Gujarat Space Conference

Outlining India's ambitious vision for its space program, (ISRO) chief said the country will build a space station by 2035 and an Indian presence on the moon by 2040. The ISRO chief was speaking at the International Space Conference 2024 in Gandhinagar, . Reflecting on the recent successes and the guidance provided by Prime Minister , Somanath said the prime minister has always been a fervent advocate for the space endeavours of India.

Also Read | "Let me look at the type of vision that the Prime Minister has given after this success story of the last 6 months. I think he also has been an ardent supporter of space programs ever since he was a CM of this state... What he told us is that we must create continuous activity of humans' presence in space," the ISRO chief said.

“Though we have a , it must continue over a long period leading up to a human landing on the moon and an Indian landing on the moon by 2040. It looks far away, but it's not far away. It's so close. And we must build a space station by 2035, a space station that is accessible for Indians to go there and do research...," he added.

Earlier, ISRO chief said " We have a roadmap for what we have planned till 2047... We can build a space station, we can send human beings to the moon, and we can create moon based economic activity in space," reported ANI. Also Read | "We've not given the Prime Minister an over ambitious target.

2040 is 17 years away and that's a good time to develop technologies to send humans to the Moon. Our work on the proposed space station too is progressing aggressively and we should be able to have the first unit ready by 2028," Somanath told TOI. Somanath's speech comes on the heels of a series of successful missions and announcements by Isro, including the launch of the Aditya L1 spacecraft to study the Sun from the first Sun Earth Lagrangian point (L1) and the X ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat) to analyse cosmic X rays.

Also Read | ISRO is also preparing for the Gaganyaan mission, with a series of tests planned throughout 2024 to ensure readiness for the targeted 2025 launch. Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world to know more. Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away!.