ISRO’s LVM3 Rocket Successfully Launches US BlueBird Block-2 Satellite

On December 24, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully launched a US-built communications satellite, BlueBird Block-2, aboard its heavy-lift LVM3 rocket. At 8:55 am from Sriharikota, the 43.5-metre ‘Baahubali' rocket lifted off and ascended for about 15 minutes. Powered by two solid boosters, a liquid core stage and a cryogenic upper stage, LVM3 placed the 6,100 kg satellite into a 520 km low Earth orbit. The launch marked the sixth operational flight of LVM3.

The LVM3 Rocket and Mission Profile

According to ISRO, the LVM3 is a three-stage rocket with two huge solid boosters, a liquid core stage and a cryogenic upper stage. The lift-off mass of it is 640 tonnes, and it is 43.5 m high. It has already launched Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-3 and OneWeb internet satellite batches. Its last landing (with CMS-03 communications satellite) was on 2 November 2025. This sixth operational mission (LVM3-M6) saw a normal launch, and the payload was in orbit approximately 15 minutes after the launch.

Payload and Commercial Significance

US-based AST SpaceMobile constructed BlueBird Block-2, which is a part of a next-generation satellite network that will provide space-based cellular broadband to widely available smartphones. Its weight, approximately 6.1 tonnes, is the heaviest communications satellite ever to be put into the low Earth orbit by LVM3. When it is in its 520km orbit, it must allow 4G / 5G voice, video and data communications between ordinary smartphones, and with no specialised ground equipment. Conducted on a purely commercial basis with the marketing division of ISRO, NewSpace India Ltd, the mission highlights the increased role of India in the launch business in the world.