Sometimes, what it takes to get the job done is child-like tenacity. And ‘KID’, one of the so-called passengers aboard Monday’s failed PSLV-C62 mission, appears to have shown exactly that.
When it was widely believed that the PSLV’s entire payload — including the crucial Anvesha surveillance satellite — had been lost following the mission failure, Spanish startup Orbital Paradigm revealed on Tuesday that its Kestrel Initial Demonstrator (KID) capsule had not only separated from the launch vehicle but had also successfully transmitted data.
The near-miraculous nature of the feat was not lost on the company.
“Our KID capsule, against all odds, separated from PSLV C62, switched on, and transmitted data. We’re reconstructing the trajectory. Full report will come,”
Orbital Paradigm posted on X.
On its website, the company says it is working to enable “space industrialisation” by offering “frequent, efficient and accessible” flights from orbit back to Earth. Central to this effort is the development of capsules capable of withstanding the extreme heat of atmospheric re-entry, while keeping space-to-Earth cargo missions relatively low-cost.
KID was flown as a technology demonstrator and serves as a prototype for Orbital Paradigm’s proposed vehicle ‘Kernel’, which is designed to return up to 120 kg of payload from orbit to Earth.
Ahead of the mission, Orbital Paradigm co-founder and CEO Francesco Cacciatore wrote that sending KID into space was a key step in the company’s effort to “master” atmospheric re-entry.
“Unlike other mission phases, there is no way to accurately replicate on ground, at the same time, all the conditions encountered during re-entry,” he wrote.
The ‘lost’ 15
Alongside KID, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) was carrying 15 other satellites, including the EOS-N1 Earth observation satellite and the Anvesha surveillance satellite developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). Anvesha was intended to strengthen India’s defence surveillance capabilities by helping detect enemy movement and troop build-ups.
The payload also included AyulSat, a dedicated tanker satellite, along with satellites built by Dhruva Space and several student-developed satellites.
What went wrong
PSLV-C62, ISRO’s first mission of 2026, lifted off from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh at 10.18 am. According to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the rocket’s first two stages performed as expected, but problems emerged during the third stage of flight.
ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan said disturbances were detected while the strap-on motors were providing thrust in the third stage, leading to deviations from the intended flight path.
“Disturbances in the rocket and later deviation from the flight path were observed when strap-on motors were providing thrust during the flight’s third stage to propel the vehicle to the intended altitude,” Narayanan said.
ISRO has said a detailed analysis of the mission data is underway to determine the precise cause of the failure.
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