With rising space traffic, operational challenges for satellite agencies globally continue to increase dramatically. As per ISRO’s most recent space situational awareness report, ISRO performed 140 collision-avoidance maneuvers (CAMs) in 2025, which represented the largest number of CAMs completed by ISRO between 2010 and 2025. This increase reflects the increasing congestion in geostationary and low-earth orbit, indicating that the increased safety of satellites will be an ongoing operational issue.

Why Did ISRO Have to Perform a Record Number of Collision-Avoidance Maneuvers in 2025?

• Exponential growth in space cluttering: In 2025, ISRO executed 140 collision avoidance maneuvers, which is the highest ever, due to exponential growth in space satellites and satellite clustering in orbit.
• Close-approach monitoring system: ISRO monitors approaching objects in space and executes collision-avoidance maneuvers whenever satellites pose collision threats to other objects.
• Propellant-powered maneuvers: A collision avoidance maneuver entails the activation of thrusters aboard the satellite to alter its course.
• Increasing historical trend: From 1 in 2010 to 140 in 2025, there has been an escalating historical trend of executing collision avoidance maneuvers.

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What Do ISRO’s Satellite Maneuvers Reveal About Space Safety Operations?

• Global warning system engagement: The Combined Space Operations Center sent more than 1.5 lakhs of warnings to Indian satellites in 2025 alone.
• Specific mission CAMs: CAM for the NISAR mission, a collaborative mission between NASA and ISRO that took off last July, was conducted.
• Distribute maneuvers by orbit: A total of 14 CAMs were carried out for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) missions, and 4 were executed for Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellites.
• Chandrayaan-2 security: Two CAMs were specifically executed for Chandrayaan-2 when it was in orbit.

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How Is ISRO Managing the Increased Risk of Collisions in Orbit?

In 2025, scientists at ISRO performed 563 maneuvers to safely move satellites into and out of low earth orbit, 519 geostationary orbit maneuvers, and 16 maneuvers for Chandrayaan-2. Furthermore, 82 planned maneuvers for LEO satellites were revised due to post-maneuver collision risks, while only two planned maneuvers for GEO satellites were revised due to post-maneuver collision risks. These statistics illustrate that modern space missions require ongoing trajectory adjustments post-launch on a continual basis.

Due to the rising space traffic, navigating in orbit has become more complicated than ever before. By performing 140 collision avoidance maneuvers, ISRO clearly shows the large scale of risk management that is necessary in an increasingly crowded environment to protect its assets in space. Rising levels of traffic will impact how all space agencies design their missions to ensure orbital safety over an extended period of time.

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