---
title: "Mission Shakti: India's Anti-Satellite Test (ASAT)"
description: "Mission Shakti is India's 2019 anti-satellite test that made it the fourth country with ASAT capabilities, crucial for national security and space strategy."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/mission-shakti-asat"
---

[New](https://modeldiplomat.com/)

#

Model Diplomat Research Team · Last reviewed June 22, 2026

TL;DR

- Mission Shakti was India's March 2019 anti-satellite test in which a missile destroyed a live satellite in low Earth orbit, making India the fourth ASAT-capable state.
- Did Mission Shakti violate the Outer Space Treaty?
- Why did India choose a target at only 283 kilometres altitude?
- How does Mission Shakti differ from India's Ballistic Missile Defence programme?
- What institutional changes followed Mission Shakti?

[Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services/glossary)Updated June 22, 2026

Go beyond the definition

## Research Mission Shakti (Anti-Satellite Test) like a delegate

Model Diplomat's AI drafts position papers, speeches, and country research with real sources — built for MUN and politics students.

## Timeline

1. 27 March 2019

   Mission Shakti was the codename for India's first successful anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon test, conducted on , when a kinetic-kill interceptor destroyed an I…

2. 11 January 2007

   India became the fourth state to demonstrate a hit-to-kill ASAT capability, after the United States (1985, and again in Operation Burnt Frost in 2008), the f…

3. 24 January 2019

   The target was Microsat-R, an Indian imaging satellite weighing roughly 740 kilograms that had been launched by ISRO's PSLV-C44 on and placed in a low Earth…

## Research it like a delegate

Research on modeldiplomat.com

## Ask a follow-up about Mission Shakti (Anti-Satellite Test)

Open a cited briefing in Model Diplomat search — timelines, positions, and sources you can use in committee or exam answers.

[Start research on Mission Shakti (Anti-Satellite Test)](https://modeldiplomat.com/search?q=Explain%20Mission%20Shakti%20\(Anti-Satellite%20Test\)%20%E2%80%94%20key%20dates%2C%20actors%2C%20positions%2C%20and%20sources)

Example

On 27 March 2019, India's DRDO launched a kinetic-kill interceptor from Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Island that destroyed the Microsat-R satellite at roughly 283 km altitude, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced as Mission Shakti.

Keep learning

## Go deeper than the definition

[Explore all Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams lessons](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services)[Test yourself with a quiz](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/quiz/civil-services)

## Take Mission Shakti (Anti-Satellite Test) beyond the glossary

Ask the AI research engine built for diplomacy — get briefings, position papers, and speeches with sources you can cite in committee.