Digantara takes first step towards space map

A debate was raging on Indian social media last week about the number of hours spent in the office, but Rithwik Neelakantan likely missed most of it – he had spent three days of that week at the office itself. As the lead overseeing the algorithms powering Scot (Space Camera for Object Tracking) a satellite developed by Bangalore-based startup Digantara, Rithwik devoted every available minute to ensuring everything was in place as the D-date for the launch approached.

On January 15, 2025, as the Digantara satellite soared into space aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-12 mission, the team, including Trivandrum-native Rithwik, sat glued to their screens at the Bangalore control centre. Cheers erupted soon after as the satellite was successfully deployed, making it the first commercial satellite to monitor objects floating above us – known in space tech parlance as resident space objects (RSOs).

“It was an unbelievable experience for everyone involved,” says Rithwik, who did his MTech in 2015 and PhD in 2024 at the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST). “It was doubly sweet for us to see algorithms we developed in-house performing well in our own company's product.”

During tense moments like this, do they ever get time to celebrate? “Yes,” he says with a laugh. “After we established the first contact with the satellite, the geometry of orbital motion gave us about an hour till the next rendezvous. So, we had a celebration then.”

Rithwik and the Digantara core team, who were all cooped up in the office during the lead-up to the launch, rolled up their sleeves and got back to work soon after their celebration. The startup’s 90-strong team is now testing out all systems before data collection begins.

The company, founded by Anirudh Sharma, Rahul Rawat, and Tanweer Ahmed, says its satellite launch is a technology demonstration mission and Digantara’s ultimate goal is to create a “Google Maps” for future space missions.

“We have to test the satellite's altitude, rotation, and exact position – only then can we determine the location of other objects,” says Rithwik, Technical Lead of SDA Data Products. He believes Digantara will be ready to start collecting and calibrating data to showcase their capabilities to the world by the end of February.

Currently, debris up to 10 centimetres in size is tracked using ground-based stations. If all goes as planned, Digantara will provide data on space debris as small as five centimetres. Their Scot satellite will not only detect objects but also observe them multiple times to map their path, altitude, and other characteristics. This process is known as revisit rate. While a US-based company recently attempted similar tracking, it did not succeed.

Digantara’s founders aim to create a comprehensive database of man-made objects in space – akin to how Larry Page and Sergey Brin envisioned indexing the entire internet. “Books on the Google founders were a staple for our team, who looked up to them as an inspiration,”admits Rithwik.

Digantara plans to launch two platforms: the Space Mission Assurance Platform (Space-MAP) and the Space Threat Assessment and Response Suite (Stars). Together, these platforms will offer an accurate assessment of the space above, providing future project planners with a “Google Maps for space.”

Pioneering Move

The startup has already established a land-based observatory in Ladakh to track space objects and integrate the data to provide a comprehensive picture. This is India’s first observatory dedicated to tracking space objects. In contrast, other observatories, such as those run by the Indian Astronomical Union, focus on stars, planets, and asteroids, not low Earth orbit.

The Scot satellite, positioned 510 kilometres above Earth, works in tandem with ground stations to deliver vital information for future space missions. With over 11,000 satellites already in orbit and plans for thousands more by nations and private players, detailed route maps will soon be essential for all space missions.

“We see ourselves as an enabler of future technologies and platforms. If we go back 100 years, airplanes were the stuff of fiction until the Wright Brothers came along. Later, as the number of airplanes increased, we needed infrastructure to coordinate them, leading to air traffic management. We are now at an inflection point in space exploration. Very soon, there will be a critical need for infrastructure to coordinate all space operations.”

“Space tourism has already taken off. Plans are also in place to establish refuelling bases and power generation centres in space. As projects like these take shape, more requirements will emerge. We see our technology as an enabler for that. That is our vision,” says Rithwik.

Digantara plans to create a constellation of 40 satellites, with three scheduled for launch later in 2025. Over the next four to five years, the startup aims to have the entire constellation in orbit. They have already established a 25,000 sq ft facility in Bangalore for assembly and testing.

Booming Sector

A Forbes report states that Singapore Space and Technology has partnered with Digantara to train its machine learning algorithms, while Space Machines Company, an Australian in-space servicing provider, has signed an agreement for optical sensors. The global space economy is projected to reach 1 trillion US dollars by 2030, but India’s current share is just 2 percent, or 8 billion US dollars. The government aims to increase this to 44 billion US dollars by 2040.

“The Indian space industry is in a boom phase now. This is something that should have happened earlier but didn’t, for various reasons. Now, the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is encouraging private players, and the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (In-Space), established by the Department of Space, is facilitating collaboration between startups. This is very encouraging,” says Rithwik.

He highlights how the US space agency Nasa has outsourced nearly all rocket launches to private players, paving the way for companies like SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, and Blue Origin, established by Jeff Bezos. However, Indian launch companies can be more cost-effective, giving India a competitive edge globally, he says.

The advantage for such companies lies in the pool of space scientists from Isro, who have decades of experience in space missions. “Their hands-on experience is invaluable. Startups focus on innovation, but we lack experience in actual space missions like satellite launches. Guidance from Isro personnel is a huge bonus for us,” says Rithwik.

Kerala’s Bullock Cart

As our conversation ended on a high note about the future of Indian space tech, one cannot help but rue the fact that Kerala has yet to fully leverage this advantage. Trivandrum, the cradle of the Indian space program, is home to thousands of Isro scientists and houses prominent institutions like the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Isro Inertial Systems Unit (IISU), Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC), and BrahMos Aerospace.

Two years ago, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced plans to establish a park dedicated to space technology. However, the proposed K-Space still operates out of a rented building, and much of its efforts remain bogged down in paperwork and bureaucratic red tape.

Neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh are zooming ahead, while Kerala’s government machinery appears stuck in an era when bullock carts were used to transport rockets.

India has an out of this world week

Indian space tech had a blockbuster week, achieving three unparalleled feats that showcased the country’s rise as a global space power. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) put India at the forefront of space technology with Spadex (Space Docking Experiment), successfully joining two small craft in space. This milestone paves the way for ISRO’s Chandrayaan-4 mission, which aims to collect lunar samples and return them to Earth. A BBC report also highlighted that the mission tested a robotic arm capable of grabbing objects in space – a technology first demonstrated by China in 2022.

Bangalore-based Pixxel added another feather to India’s space tech cap by launching three satellites equipped with hyperspectral cameras capable of five-meter resolution and covering a 40-kilometre wide swath. These satellites capture data across over 150 spectral bands, enabling the detection of subtle changes in chemical compositions, vegetation health, water quality, and atmospheric conditions. Customers, including the Indian agriculture ministry, British Petroleum, and Nasa, are already receiving data from demo satellites launched in 2021 and 2022. However, the six satellites Pixxel plans to launch this year will provide “a lot more data than the demo satellites,” says CEO Awais Ahmed.

Salvation through Blinkit

As the Maha Kumbh Mela continues, millions head to Prayagraj in search of the ultimate truth, forsaking worldly luxuries. But just in case you feel the urge to order something while on your spiritual journey, Blinkit has you covered. In a brilliant marketing move, the quick-delivery platform has set up a temporary station at the Mela to cater to the needs of the pilgrims. A Startup India report states that the company will deliver a specially curated assortment, including pooja essentials, milk, curd, fruits, vegetables (for both self-consumption and rituals), chargers, power banks, towels, blankets, and bedsheets. Bless those Blinkit marketing souls.

Steps to cut phone addiction

Spending too much time staring at your phone and too lazy to go for a stroll? We’ve found the app just for you. A new iOS app called Steppin blocks your social media apps unless you walk a certain number of steps each day, says TechCrunch. The founder came up with the idea while on holiday in Spain, where he realised that he and his family were still scrolling on their phones instead of exploring their surroundings. The app lets you set your step goal and even provides an option to override it in case of an emergency. Just what we need here—hopefully, a local startup will work on this idea.

We Need a Bigger Zoo

The firm working to resurrect extinct species like the woolly mammoth, dodo, and Tasmanian tiger has raised another 200 million US dollars. Investors were impressed by the speed at which the company is progressing, reports CNN. At this pace, we may actually see these animals within a decade. While investors claim their motivation is conservation, some critics argue that this project is an under-scrutinised pet project for millionaires. Like Roy Scheider in the movie Jaws, all we can say is we probably need a bigger zoo.