Digantara Joins Indo-Australian Joint Mission To Manage Space Debris

Homegrown spacetech startup Digantara on Wednesday (May 1) said it has been selected for a joint India-Australia space mission to manage debris in space.

Digantara will join a clutch of spacetech companies under the “Space-MAITRI” (Mission for Australia-India’s Technology, Research, and Innovation) project, which recently received an AUD 8.5 Mn (INR 46 Cr) grant from the Australian Space Agency. 

As part of the collaboration, the Bengaluru-based startup will integrate its proprietary optical sensor technology into the Orbital Servicing Vehicle (OSV) developed by its partner Australian firm, Space Machines Company.

As per the startup, the integration will enable the monitoring of resident space objects (RSOs) in low-earth orbit (LEO), enhance space traffic management and debris monitoring. In addition, another Indian spacetech startup Ananth Technologies will offer its engineering expertise and access to cleanroom facilities for the integration and testing.

“With the support of the Australian Space Agency, this partnership merges complementary technologies to turn our shared vision of a sustainable space ecosystem into reality. This initiative not only redefines space operations but also highlights the collaborative spirit between India and Australia in advancing innovations in space.” said Digantara cofounder and CEO Anirudh Sharma.

Commenting on the collaboration, Space Machines Company’s founder and CEO Rajat Kulshrestha said, “We are thrilled to collaborate with Digantara, an innovative Indian company… By integrating Digantara’s cutting-edge optical sensor technology onto our platform, we will significantly enhance our capability to monitor and track resident space objects in low-earth orbit..”

The partnership is part of the larger Space-MAITRI mission which aims to foster collaboration between Indian and Australian spacetech stakeholders. 

Operating under the aegis of Australia’s ‘International Space Investment India Projects’ programme, the joint mission is focussed on enhancing space domain awareness (SDA) capabilities and developing a robust in-orbit servicing ecosystem towards providing ‘Roadside Assistance in Space’.

Founded in 2018 by Sharma, Rahul Rawat and Tanveer Ahmed, Digantara is building an end-to-end space operations infrastructure that plans to support stakeholders across the entire value chain and life cycle of a spacecraft mission. 

While its space debris detector is its flagship offering, the startup also aims to create a constellation of satellites to track objects as small as 1 cm. 

The partnership comes just two months after the spacetech startup marked the final close of its Series A1 funding round at $12 Mn. Backed by the likes of Peak XV Partners, Aditya Birla Ventures and state-backed lender Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), Digantara has raised $14.5 Mn in funding till date. 

Last month, the spacetech startup also unveiled its 25,000 square feet satellite assembly, integration, and testing (AIT) centre in Bengaluru’s Hebbal.

Digantara operates in the larger Indian spacetech ecosystem which has seen significant growth in the past few years on the back of government push and hefty inflow of VC capital into the sector. This has spawned the rise of homegrown players such as Agnikul, Bellatrix, Pixxel, and Skyroot across various levels of the space value chain. 

As per Inc42, the Indian spacetech sector is estimated to reach a market size of $77 Bn by 2030.

Note: We at Inc42 take our ethics very seriously. More information about it can be found here.