New Delhi, Feb. 4 -- Woman Robot Astronaut 'Vyommitra' will fly into space ahead of ISRO's ambitious 'Gaganyaan' mission, which will be India's first human-manned space flight carrying Indian astronauts into space.

Disclosing this in New Delhi during an interaction with the media, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science and Technology and Space, Jitendra Singh, said, "The uncrewed "Vyommitra" mission is scheduled for the third quarter of this year while a manned mission "Gaganyaan" is scheduled to be launched next year, that is 2025."

"Vyommitra is a name derived from two Sanskrit words, namely, "Vyoma" (meaning space) and "Mitra" (meaning friend). This female robot astronaut, said the minister, is equipped with the capabil...