Skyroot and Concert Technologies to Develop Satellite Launch Vehicle

India’s Skyroot Aerospace and Brazil’s Concert Technologies signed a two-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 7 October 2026 to jointly develop a satellite launch vehicle. The agreement was signed by Concert Space CEO Rafael Mordente during the International Astronautical Congress 2026 in Antalya, Türkiye. Brazilian Senator and astronaut Marcos Pontes and Brazilian Space Agency (AEB) President Marco Antonio Chamon attended.

Proposed launch vehicle and cooperation

The proposed vehicle is designed to carry payloads of at least 100 kilograms into low Earth orbit (LEO). It is intended to bridge the capacity gap between Brazil’s Microlauncher Program, which targets payloads of up to 40 kilograms, and Skyroot’s Vikram rocket family. The parties will assess technological requirements, commercial opportunities and possible cooperation in satellite systems and LEO constellations, and explore equatorial launches using Brazil’s location. Concert Technologies also signed a contract to test Brazil’s SNI-GNSS on an upcoming Vikram-1 flight. Separate agreements will be needed for investment, equipment supply and commercialisation.

India-Brazil space cooperation

The partnership builds on more than two decades of space cooperation between India and Brazil. Earlier collaboration included launching Brazil’s Amazônia-1 satellite using Indian launch infrastructure.

Important Facts for Exams

• Private-space authorisation: India’s IN-SPACe acts as a single-window body to promote and authorise non-government space activities, including access to ISRO facilities.
• Brazilian space governance: Brazil’s AEB coordinates the National Space Activities Programme, while technical agencies such as INPE and DCTA conduct much of the research and development.
• Equatorial launch advantage: An equatorial launch site can exploit Earth’s greater rotational speed near the equator, adding eastward velocity and reducing propellant needs for suitable orbits.
• LEO constellation operations: Unlike geostationary satellites, spacecraft in low Earth orbit circle Earth in roughly 90–120 minutes, so continuous regional coverage typically needs multiple satellites.