ISRO Launches Record-Setting BlueBird Block-2 Satellite for AST SpaceMobile

The Indian Space Research Organisation has successfully launched the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite for AST SpaceMobile. The mission, which took place from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, involved the heaviest payload ever sent into Low Earth Orbit by an LVM3 rocket, promising global high-speed cellular broadband access.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) marked yet another milestone on Wednesday with the successful launch of the BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite, belonging to U.S.-based company AST SpaceMobile. The launch event occurred at 8:55 AM IST at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, and was promptly declared a success after the satellite's placement into orbit.

This ambitious mission aimed to deploy a next-generation communication satellite capable of delivering high-speed cellular broadband directly to smartphones around the globe. Remarkably, the BlueBird Block-2 is now the heaviest payload launched into Low Earth Orbit in the history of ISRO's LVM3 rocket, underscoring the mission's significance as a commercial success for the organization and its American partners.

ISRO's formidable LVM3 rocket, a three-stage launch vehicle, played a pivotal role in this mission. Comprising two solid strap-on motors, a liquid core stage, and a cryogenic upper stage, the LVM3 boasts a lift-off mass of 640 tonnes and can carry payloads up to 4,200 kg to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit. This mission represents the sixth operational flight of LVM3, which previously launched Chandrayaan missions and successfully carried out two OneWeb satellite deployments. With AST SpaceMobile's innovative technology, users can now enjoy broadband directly via standard smartphones, enabling seamless video calls and internet browsing via 4G and 5G speeds worldwide.