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Science
Cambridge study says Indian satellite launches cost four times US, ISRO source refutes claim
✍️ TOI India
🗓 24 Aug 2026, 07:40 AM
👁 5
A Cambridge University analysis claims India's satellite launch expenses are four times higher than those of the United States, but a senior official from the Indian space department says the data are inaccurate.
A recent study by researchers at Cambridge University has concluded that the cost of launching a satellite from India is roughly four times the expense incurred by the United States for comparable missions. The analysis, based on publicly available contract figures and cost‑per‑kilogram data, suggests that India’s commercial launch pricing is far higher than previously thought.
In response, a senior official from the Department of Space, which oversees the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), rejected the study’s findings, stating that the methodology misrepresents the subsidies, in‑kind services and long‑term revenue models that keep Indian launch costs competitive. The source emphasized that official cost calculations differ markedly from the parameters used by the Cambridge team.
The disagreement highlights the challenges of comparing launch economics across different national programmes, where accounting practices, government support and market structures vary. ISRO has repeatedly asserted that its launch services remain among the most cost‑effective globally, a claim that will now be examined in light of the new academic report.
In response, a senior official from the Department of Space, which oversees the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), rejected the study’s findings, stating that the methodology misrepresents the subsidies, in‑kind services and long‑term revenue models that keep Indian launch costs competitive. The source emphasized that official cost calculations differ markedly from the parameters used by the Cambridge team.
The disagreement highlights the challenges of comparing launch economics across different national programmes, where accounting practices, government support and market structures vary. ISRO has repeatedly asserted that its launch services remain among the most cost‑effective globally, a claim that will now be examined in light of the new academic report.