ISRO Invites Indian Astronomers To Explore XPoSAT Data For New Cosmic Discoveries

Last Updated:June 22, 2026, 15:40 IST

The spacecraft orbiting 650 kms above Earth was India’s first dedicated polarimetry mission launched in 2024 designed to study X-rays emitted from various celestial sources

Indian astronomers have another opportunity to tap into data from India’s first- dedicated X-ray polarimetry satellite, XPoSat, as the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has issued a second call for research proposals.

Launched on January 1, 2024, on PSLV, the XPoSat currently orbits Earth in a near-equatorial orbit at an altitude of 650 kms with its two scientific payloads studying the changing behaviour of X-rays emitted from astronomical sources like blackhole, neutron stars under Space’s extreme conditions. This has been of immense interest to astronomers as these sources are very challenging to understand. By studying how X-ray polarisation works in Space, they can solve mysteries about where the light is coming from and what is the energy source, and possibly unravel new information about some of the major cosmic events like the supernova explosions.

The mission had marked a major milestone in India’s space science programmes when it was launched two years ago. Now, Indian scientists and researchers engaged in astronomy at institutes/universities or colleges across the country can apply for the observation time on the satellite. They can send their proposals by July 25, and if they are approved and the targeted observations are collected, then the researchers will gain access to the data for their scientific study and analysis.

Once the proposals are reviewed, the selected observations will be planned as per mission scheduling, and the data will be shared accordingly, said ISRO. After six months of proprietary period, the archived data will also be made available on the Indian Space Science Data Centre (ISSDC) and remain open to all registered users. The observations will be carried out between September 2026 and March 2027.

Also, since the satellite is operated in a pre-planned manner, the researchers will not be allowed at the Mission Operations Complex during the execution of their observations, the space agency added.

The satellite carries two main payloads. The main payload POLIX—a polarimeter instrument in X-rays measures the degree and angle of polarisation in medium X-ray energy of 8-30 keV photons from astronomical sources. The other—XSPECT—is an X-ray spectroscopy and timing payload provides spectroscopic and timing information in the energy range of 0.8-15 keV.

ISRO had earlier released some of the scientific data from the mission after its first call, which has already been published in international pee-reviewed journals. However now, it plans to further maximise the scientific returns from the mission, and released a second Announcement of Opportunity (AO) inviting new high-quality research proposals.

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Srishti Choudhary

Srishti Choudhary, Senior Assistant Editor at CNN-News18 specializes in science, environment, and climate change reporting. With over a decade of extensive field experience, she has brought incisive g...Read More

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