Red Balloon Aerospace launches Mission SANA from Vijayawada into stratosphere
Red Balloon Aerospace pulled off a big first for India by launching Mission SANA, a high-altitude super-pressure balloon from Vijayawada.
Their VISTA platform soared 25km up, carrying experiments from seven different partners.
With this, India joins countries like the US and Japan in building its own stratospheric balloon technology.
VISTA validated India's technical capability
VISTA can float in the stratosphere for weeks or even months: no gas leaks like old-school balloons. It tested things like navigation and Earth observation during this flight.
Co-founder C.V.S. Kiran described it as a "tower in the sky" that could boost disaster response, affordable internet, and more.
All payload missions were completed successfully, validating India's technical capability against international commercial standards.