Nepal’s Student-Built Satellite Mission Encounters Setback After ISRO Launch Anomaly

Nepal’s bid to achieve another milestone in space technology suffered a setback on Monday after an Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) rocket carrying multiple satellites, including one built by Nepali students, failed to place the satellites into orbit due to a technical anomaly.

The launch vehicle, PSLV-C62, encountered a problem during its third stage, preventing the deployment of as many as 16 satellites onboard, China’s Xinhua news agency reported.

The PSLV-C62 was also carrying Munal, a satellite developed by Nepali higher secondary–level students under the Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST).

ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan said the mission deviated from its intended flight path after the third stage failed to generate the required thrust due to an unexpected drop in chamber pressure, Xinhua added.

“While the initial flight stages were nominal, the third stage failed to provide the required thrust. As a result, the satellites could not be placed in orbit,” Narayanan was quoted as saying by India Today. ISRO later confirmed on X that a detailed analysis of the anomaly had been initiated.

According to the state-run national news agency of Nepal RSS, Munal was developed over two years at the country’s first Space Systems Laboratory established under NAST. The satellite was designed primarily for vegetation monitoring, testing indigenous space technology, and processing satellite data using artificial intelligence.

The satellite was launched as a rideshare payload—a cost-effective arrangement in which multiple small satellites share a single launch vehicle – in collaboration with ISRO.

Despite the failed deployment, stakeholders described the project as a significant achievement for Nepal’s scientific community, particularly for the students involved, as it demonstrated the country’s growing capacity to design and build space-grade technology.

Had the launch been successful, Munal would have been operated from a ground station in Khumaltar, Lalitpur.

Nepal had earlier launched its first satellite, NepaliSat-1, in 2019 from the United States under an international project. That satellite was developed by Nepali engineers with support from foreign institutions, marking the country’s formal entry into space research. -- With inputs from RSS