ISRO General News and Updates

[Indx TechStyle]

Story of the Week
38th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing
The 38th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing (ACRS-2017) was successfully organised during October 23-27, 2017 at New Delhi. The theme of the conference was Space Applications: Touching Human Lives. It was jointly organised by Asian Association on Remote Sensing (AARS), Indian Society of Remote Sensing (ISRS) and Indian Society of Geomatics (ISG) and Co-hosted by ISRO. ACRS-2017 is a forum to bring together students, researchers, scientists, engineers, policy makers, professionals and practitioners from developed and developing countries from and around Asia. The main aim of the conference is to share insights into the challenges and opportunities of Remote Sensing and geo-spatial technologies. The conference was inaugurated by Dr. Jitendra Singh, the Hon’ble Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Department of Space, Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India. Sri A S Kiran Kumar, Chairman ISRO was the Guest of Honour.

In his address, Dr. Jitendra Singh recounted ISRO’s efforts in initiating collaborative projects with Ministries and Government departments for stronger utilisation of space-based tools for effective governance. He has stressed the extended support of space technologies to neighbouring countries through the recently launched South Asia satellite. He said that ISRO missions are capable to provide more accurate information not only on the Earth but also the neighbouring planets. Utilisation of Space technology for common man is the main aim of the country’s space missions. Sri A S Kiran Kumar in his address, emphasised the role of space technology for various national developmental imperatives in governance, societal benefits, climate change and disaster risk reduction & mitigation. He elucidated various applications, which are directly touching the lives of citizens like farmers, fishermen, students, decision makers etc. He also inaugurated the technical exhibition after the inaugural session.

Presidents of AARS, ISRS and ISG shared their views on contributions of the respective societies, followed by Awards conferred to eminent personalities by these societies.

Total 6 plenary sessions, 13 special sessions, 67 technical sessions and 6 poster sessions were organised during the conference. 670 research papers were presented in oral and poster sessions in various themes namely, Advance Image Processing & Data Analytics, Climate Change & its Impact, Cultural Heritage Documentation, Cal/Val of EO Sensors, Disaster & Risk Reduction, Agriculture & Soils, Forest & Environment, Group on Earth Observations Global Agricultural Monitoring Initiative: Asian Experience, Geosciences & Mineral Exploration, Health GIS, High Resolution Data Applications, AVIRIS-NG; Climate Change & its Regional Impacts for Nature & Human Activities in Asia, Geo-spatial Education: Methods & Modalities, Citizen Science: Methods & Applications, Online Platforms for Education & Outreach, Crop Productivity from EO Satellites, Agro-met Information from EO Satellites, Marine Geology & Coastal Studies, NISAR - NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar, Night-time Lights Imaging & Applications, Ocean & Atmospheric Studies, Open Source Geo-spatial, SAR Polarimetry: Methods & Applications, Urban & Infrastructure Planning and Water Resources Management.

The conference witnessed scientific presentations, during plenary sessions. Very eminent speakers across the globe namely Prof. Dr. Deren Li (Professor, Wuhan University), China; Dr. Christian Heipke (President, ISPRS);Dr. A.S. Kiran Kumar (Chairman, Space Commission and Secretary, Department of Space, Government of India);Dr. Hsin-Chia Lin (Albert), NSPO, Taiwan; Dr.C.Silapathong, GISTDA, Thailand;Prof. G.Xingfa, RADI, China; Dr. M. Annadurai, ISRO, India; Dr. Shin-ichi (Takashima), Sobue, JAXA, Japan; Dr. C.D. Elvidge (NOAA, USA);Dr. P.A. Rosen, JPL/CIT, USA; Prof. M.V. Marek, GCRI-CAS, Czech Republic delivered the invited talks. Dr. K.Shivan, Director VSSC delivered Vikram Sarabhai memorial lecture on India's Space Transportation System. ISG Millennium Lecture was delivered by Dr. Upendra Tripathy (ISA, India) on Solar Energy Prospects and ISA’s emerging role in energy segment. Conference was also attended by many of the former Directors and pioneer scientists of ISRO.

A panel discussion was organised on the final day of the conference on “Strengthening Academic, Industry, Scientific Societies and Space Agencies Interface for Improving Human Lives”. Experts from AARS, ISRS, ISRO and Indian industries provided their views on the topic. Active participation of the delegates made the session lively and interactive.

During the conference, a web contest was also organised and awarded the best web developer. Best paper awards were also given during concluding session. 32 Industries / Institutions exhibited their products and services related to geo-spatial technologies in the technical exhibition held during the conference. The conference was attended by more than 900 participants from 53 countries across the globe.

Conference started with Lighting of the Lamp

Dr. Jitendra Singh, the Hon’ble Minister of State PMO, addressing the gathering during the inaugural session

Inauguration of technical exhibition by Sri A S Kiran Kumar, Chairman ISRO

Story of the Week - Archive
Oct 30, 2017 : 38th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing
Oct 23, 2017 : ETS - A System for Transportation of Small Satellite and Flight Hardware
Oct 17, 2017 : ISRO Celebrates World Space Week-2017
Oct 09, 2017 : Successful completion of One Year of Service by SCATSAT-1 Scatterometer
Oct 03, 2017 : Many Satellites Celebrated Birth Anniversary during last week of September
Sep 25, 2017 : Operationalisation of Thunderstorm Nowcasting Services over NE Region using DWR data
Sep 19, 2017 : Monitoring Larsen C Rift propagation, Calving and Iceberg Deformation: through VEDAS developed Automatic Technique

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[Indx TechStyle]

Vama Industries bags ISRO order for network system

Vama Industries Ltd, Hyderabad-based IT Infrastructure and ITes company, announced on Thursday that it had bagged an order worth ₹35.42-crore from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for developing a hierarchical storage management system.

The order is for supply, installation, integration, testing and commissioning of computer infrastructure, hierarchical storage management system, network elements for data processing and exploitation system.

Expansion plans

Rama Raju VA, CMD of the company, said, “The order from ISRO is significant for Vama Industries and we want to expand our business in different locations across India.”

Vama Industries, a BSE listed firm has a wholly owned subsidiary company in Singapore, Vama Technologies Pte Ltd.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

ISRO to launch 28 commercial satellites along with CartoSat-2

A S Kiran Kumar, Chairman, ISRO
Supports start-up that makes micro-thermal thrusters

The Indian Space Research Organisation will launch 28 commercial satellites along with CartoSat-2 satellite in the second half of December.

Addressing reporters to announce ‘International Seminar on Indian Space Programme: Trends and Opportunities for Industry’, supported by Ficci and ISRO’s commercial arm Antrix Corporation, ISRO Chairman AS Kiran Kumar said that out of the 28 commercial satellites, 25 are nano and three are micro.

ISRO has been improving its launches, he said. “Now we are doing 8-10 launches a year; our aim is 18 per year,” Kumar said, and added “It is here we need private participation.”

S Rakesh, Chairman and Managing Director, Antrix Corporation, said: “The corporation so far has ₹850 crore firm orders in its book. Another ₹250-300 crore are work in progress.

“Antrix in total has orders to launch 200 satellites belonging to 29 countries.”

Kumar said: “ISRO is not lagging behind in supporting or nurturing start-ups. A small company, Bellatrix Aerospace, started by young people, have successfully got a contract to develop micro-thermal thrusters. “After our experience in working with this start-up, ISRO is planning to set up an incubation centre to handhold and encourage start-ups, to grow and capture a share of the global space market.”

Vivek Pandit, Assistant Secretary General, Ficci, said: “The objective of the two-day (November 20-21) conference in New Delhi is to deliberate on the best practices, pursue the ongoing discussion process to support further work of the Indian space sector and facilitate private participation.” He said that during the seminar, stakeholders, policy makers, thought leaders and academia will also brainstorm on enabling and encouraging government policies to target both domestic and global markets.

 

[mahesh]

‘POOR PRESSURE BUILD-UP FAILED PSLV-C39’

The committee looking into what led to failure of PSLV-C39 on August 31 has identified the primary reason. "There was a bellow in the system which did not allow pressure to build up and shredded the nose cone," said ISRO chairman AS Kiran Kumar on Monday. Kumar said that there were no design flaws and no fundamental problem in PSLV. "The PSLV has performed well in the past with several successful launches. It (failure) was a combination of several factors and we are looking to build up a more robust system," Kumar said.

 

[indiatester]

‘POOR PRESSURE BUILD-UP FAILED PSLV-C39’

The committee looking into what led to failure of PSLV-C39 on August 31 has identified the primary reason. "There was a bellow in the system which did not allow pressure to build up and shredded the nose cone," said ISRO chairman AS Kiran Kumar on Monday. Kumar said that there were no design flaws and no fundamental problem in PSLV. "The PSLV has performed well in the past with several successful launches. It (failure) was a combination of several factors and we are looking to build up a more robust system," Kumar said.

But the nose cone was not shredded. The payload fairing remained intact instead of detaching after clearing the atmosphere.

 

[Chinmoy]

ISRO to launch 28 commercial satellites along with CartoSat-2

A S Kiran Kumar, Chairman, ISRO
Supports start-up that makes micro-thermal thrusters

So this is CARTOSAT-2E?

Please enter a message with at least 30 characters.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

So this is CARTOSAT-2E?

Please enter a message with at least 30 characters.

waiting for res boasting, world's most powerful reconnaissance satellite.

 

[Yggdrasil]

Not sure where to ask this, so asking here: does anyone know where to buy Mr Nambi Narayanan's autobiography "The Orbit of Memories" in English? I can't seem to find it anywhere online. Has it been released yet? Has anyone seen it in the stores?

 

[Butter Chicken]

First privately built rocket to launch by 2021: Isro chief

NEW DELHI: In a step towards outsourcing its launch vehicle programme, the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is planning a joint venture with a consortium of companies where a space rocket will be completely built by the private industry.

Speaking exclusively to TOI on the sidelines of an international seminar on 'Indian Space Programme' here, Isro chairman A S Kiran Kumar said, "The target for such a (fully privately built) launch vehicle is 2020-21. Isro will be part of the JV. Work is in progress to put the mechanism in place."

Till now, Isro was the only manufacturer of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). In the two decades since PSLV's debut launch, Isro has launched 39 consecutive successful missions. While commenting on a recent report that China is planning to reduce the cost of launching satellites to woo foreign customers, the Isro chief said, "We will continue to improve our cost-effectiveness. It (launch cost) is not linked to what someone else is doing. It's not possible to change your activities at such a pace."

On increasing the number of satellites, Kiran Kumar said, "Currently, there are 42 satellites in orbit. These satellites are being used for earth observation, navigation and communication purposes. Still, we are significantly short of communication satellites. Therefore, Isro will double its launch frequency from 8-10 launches (per annum) to about 20 from 2018 onwards. We are targeting to launch 60 satellites in the next five years ."

 

[Vinod DX9]

Latest image of MARS taken by MCC

 

[Indx TechStyle]

Seeking comments on Draft "Space Activities Bill, 2017" from the stake holders/public -regarding.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

Story of the week
APRSAF-24 held in Bengaluru
The 24th session of the Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-24) was organised at Bengaluru, India during November 14 -17, 2017. APRSAF-24 was co-organised by the Department of Space (DOS) / Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan (MEXT) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) with the theme “Space Technology for Enhanced Governance and Development”. Sri A S Kiran Kumar, Chairman, ISRO/ Secretary, DOS and Ms. Mami Oyama, Deputy Director General, MEXT were the General Co-Chair of this APRSAF-24 session.

APRSAF annual meetings are open fora for those who have interest in cooperation in the field of space activities in the Asia-Pacific region and are organised under four working groups namely ‘Space Applications’, ‘Space Technology’, ‘Space Environment Utilisation’ and ‘Space Education’. The recent achievements and future plans of each country and region were deliberated in these four working groups. The working group meetings were held during November 14-15, 2017. The summaries of the working group deliberations were presented in the plenary sessions during November 16-17, 2017 including special sessions on specific themes, namely, ‘Sustainable Development Goals’, ‘Space Policy’ and ‘Space Exploration’. There was also an evening session on ‘Space for Future Society’ on November 15, 2017. Associated events of the Working Groups, namely ‘Space Applications For Environment (SAFE) Workshop’, ‘Kibo ABC Workshop’ and ‘Workshop on Space Policy’ were organised on November 13, 2017.

APRSAF annual meetings are preceded by Water Rocket Events and Poster Contest for school students, as a means of generating interests in space and nurturing their creativity and innovative thoughts. APRSAF-24 Water Rocket event was organised during November 11-12, 2017 with Water Rocket making workshop followed by launch competition. 56 students in the age group of 12-16 years from 11 Asia Pacific countries including India along with Colombia in South America actively participated in this event. An educator session was organised, in parallel, in which about 40 teachers and educators from Asia-Pacific countries exchanged views on teaching methods. In Water Rocket event, teams from Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Malaysia have secured the First, Second and Third places, respectively.

APRSAF-24 Poster Contest was organised with the theme "United Through Space”. Thirty-six posters were submitted by students in the age group of 8-11 years from 12 Asia Pacific countries including India. There were five different awards in the Poster Contest event and the ISRO award was won by Indonesian student.

An exhibition was also organised to provide an opportunity for the Indian and foreign Industries to showcase their technological capabilities. Nine Indian Industries and nine Foreign Industries have set-up their stalls in the exhibition.

APRSAF-24 has been different from earlier annual meetings in many ways. It had highest number of Heads of Space Agencies from Asia Pacific region and South Asian countries. Heads of Space Agency session to deliberate on space agencies’ contribution towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was organised for the first time with participation of heads of 9 space agencies in Asia Pacific region - India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Russia, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam. Two Special sessions, one each on ‘Space Policy’ and ‘Space Exploration’ were organised for the first time during the main plenary day. As a host Nation, India has organised a special session on ‘Space Technology for enhanced Governance and Development’, wherein officials from user Ministries of Central and State Government have shared their experience on the utility of space technology inputs for planning, monitoring and decision making.

A ‘Space Leaders Round-Table’ was organised in the concluding session on November 17, 2017 to discuss on the joint statement.

Following are the major recommendations of the Working Groups:

-National space agencies in Asia Pacific region to develop small/cube satellites collaboratively, as the data from these satellites could provide input to solve various common issues of Asia Pacific region;

- To further promote educational activities, using space technology as a tool that will be beneficial for the human resource development of the next generation;

- Encourage and accelerate Kibo (in ISS) utilization through feasibility studies in each country;

- To further promote space application including rice crop monitoring, global rainfall monitoring, fire hotspot, haze monitoring and disaster management, etc.

Brief of various sessions/ events of APRSAF-24 are given below:

-Space agency heads from nine agencies presented on current activities and future possibilities/expected contributions of space technology in resolving their National priority issues toward achieving the SDGs.

-Space policy experts from seven governments in the region have shared their views on how their country is evolving their space policy in response to their national requirements.

-Representatives from India, Japan, Korea, Russia and UAE presented their perspectives on space exploration including the utilization of International Space Station, development of Deep Space Gateways and reaching out to the Moon, Mars and beyond.

-Space agency representatives from 13 countries in Asia Pacific region have presented achievements of their national space programme and background on national policies in the ‘’Country Report” session.

-In ‘Space for Future Society’ session, the speakers have shared their ideas on how aerospace technology, such as solar power, Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and remote sensing can contribute to future society.

-In the Space Cooperation in Asia Pacific session, representatives of 7 international organizations have shared their views on the current trends and way forward in enhancing space cooperation.

-Space Policy workshop was jointly organized by the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Public Policy, Japan and the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), India, to provide an overview of space policy perspectives in the Asia-Pacific region and to explore further possibilities for international cooperation in the region.

-SAFE (Space Applications For Environment) is to contribute to the solution to various environmental problems with space technology and many prototyping which is being carried out by Asia Pacific countries has been reviewed.

-Kibo-ABC (Asian Beneficial Collaboration through Kibo Utilisation) workshop was organized to encourage countries in the Asia-Pacific region to use the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM). Kibo is human space facility that provides unique research capabilities in the International Space Station (ISS).

-A Press meet was also organised on Nov 17, 2017 where all the Heads of Space Agencies participated and interacted with the media

APRSAF-24 had more than 600 registrations from over 31 countries and 7 international organisations. Over 50% of the participants were foreign nationals. In addition to the 9 Heads of Space Agencies, President of French National Space Agency (who is also President of International Astronautical Federation-IAF), Director, United Nations Office of Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), two astronauts from Japan namely, Ms. Chiaki Mukai and Ms. Koichi Wakata, have participated in APRSAF-24.

APRSAF-24 water rocket workshop in progress.

APRSAF-24 water rocket making workshop in the final stages.

Educators session in parallel with water rocket making workshop in progress.

Multiple launches of water rockets during APRSAF-24 water rocket competition.

Group photo of students participating in APRSAF-24 water rocket event.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

A view of posters displayed at the venue of APRSAF-24.

Chairman ISRO addresses the plenary of APRSAF-24.

Heads of Space Agencies of Asia-Pacific Countries during the Plenary of APRSAF-24.

APRSAF-24 Press Meet.

Partcipants of APRSAF-24.
Story of the Week - Archive


Nov 21, 2017 : APRSAF-24 held in Bengaluru
Nov 13, 2017 : ISRO Organises INTROMET-2017
Nov 06, 2017 : CZT Imager of AstroSat measures first phase resolved X-ray polarisation of Crab pulsar
Oct 30, 2017 : 38th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing
Oct 23, 2017 : ETS - A System for Transportation of Small Satellite and Flight Hardware
Oct 17, 2017 : ISRO Celebrates World Space Week-2017
Oct 09, 2017 : Successful completion of One Year of Service by SCATSAT-1 Scatterometer

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[Indx TechStyle]

Story of the Week
International Seminar on ISP: ‘Trends and Opportunities for Industry’
The International Seminar on Indian Space Programme (ISP): ‘Trends and Opportunities for Industry’ was organised by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Antrix Corporation Limited in coordination with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) at New Delhi during November 20-21, 2017.

The objective of this two-day seminar was to deliberate on the best practices, pursue the ongoing discussion process to support further work of India's Space Sector and facilitate arriving at coherent framework, where in India's Space Sector can expand the domestic and global opportunities further, through enhanced partnerships and collaborations. The seminar highlighted the achievements and major milestones of Indian Space Program in recent past and discussed the future plans.

The Seminar was inaugurated by Sri AS Kiran Kumar, Secretary, Department of Space / Chairman ISRO. In his inaugural address he emphasized the vision and objectives enunciated by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi can be achieved, with progress in ‘Make in India’ and ‘Start-up and Stand-up India’ initiatives. He said the industry and stakeholders in the space sector value-chain could play a pivotal role in providing the necessary fillip to the advancement of country. He stressed the value addition in the space sector is multi-faceted in its approach with collaborative models of development like Public Private Partnership (PPP) are adding a new dimension to the future growth prospects. He urged the private sector to collaborate and explore the huge potential in space sector.

The President of Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and Dy. Director General of Glavkosmos, Russia also gave a special address during the inaugural session and reiterated their commitment to working with India in the space sector.

An Exhibition was also organised during the seminar, which was participated, by several Space Industries and ISRO. The exhibition showcased ISRO's recent achievements in the area of Space Science and Technology. It also housed Five Kiosks with large screen display allocated to major centres of ISRO, demonstrating the offerings to the industry from the respective centre.

FICCI Compendium on Indian Space Industry was released during the inaugural session before the inauguration of exhibition.

The two-day seminar included sessions on "Space Industry Ecosystem : Opportunities for Industry", "Sustainable Propulsion Systems and Space Vehicles for ISP", "Leveraging Public-Private Partnership in Indian Satellite Programs", "Capacity Building and Talent Management" and followed by Panel Discussions on –"Role of Industry in ISP" and "International Industrial Cooperation in Space". Each session was lead by the eminent personalities of ISRO, Antrix, FICCI, NITI Aayog, IIT(B), MEA, BEL, L&T, HAL, MT Aerospace AG, Germany and JSC Glavkosmos, Russia, etc.,

-Talk on - Perspective of ISRO's Programme over next decade, Experiences of Russian Space Ecosystem, Perspective of Indian Space Industry (Electronics Systems, Mechanical Systems), Perspective of Foreign Supply Chain etc., were delivered during the session on "Space Industry Ecosystem: Opportunities for Industry".

-Deliberations on Propulsion and Related Technologies, Launch Vehicles and Related Technologies, Policy Perspectives etc., were made during the session on "Sustainable Propulsion Systems and Space Vehicles for ISP".

-Discussions on Satellites, Payloads and Related Technologies, Enhanced Engagement opportunities for Indian Space Electronics Industry etc, were held during the session on "Leveraging Public-Private Partnership in Indian Satellite Programs".

-Capacity Building in Indian Space programme, in Space Applications, Evolving Roles of Academia in the Space, Synergy between Industry and Academia - Experience of Singapore etc., were discussed in the session on "Capacity Building and Talent Management".

-The Panel Discussion on Role of Industry in Indian Space Program was led by CMD, Antrix Corporation Ltd. with the Panel comprising speakers from various industries, from ISRO and from FICCI.

-Panel Discussion on International Industrial Cooperation in Space was Moderated by Honorary Advisor, Space Division, FICCI with Panelists from Japan, Singapore, Russia, Thailand & USA.

Each Session concluded with a Closing Remark by the Session Chair and Distribution of Green Certificates.

While giving his valedictory address, Foreign Secretary, Dr. S Jaishankar said that India is proud of its space sector achievements. He mentioned that the space sector has come of age with rapid strides in PSLV, GSLV and GSLV Mark III and having potential in economic growth and development of the country. He said that Industry, Government and Entrepreneurs have to work in tandem to realize the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Leaving no space between Common Man and Space’. He said endeavour should be for holistic development of common man, so that the advantages of Space development reach the last mile. He said that the recent launch of South Asia Satellite is a matter of pride and reflects "neighbourhood first" policy of India.

The seminar provided a platform to deliberate and brainstorm on various multi-dimensional aspects of space collaboration among various stakeholders. The event saw the participation of key players from ISRO, the Indian Space Industry, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) and International Agencies from Japan, Russia, Singapore, USA, Germany, France and Thailand. The stakeholders from industry, policy makers, thought leaders and academia, held discussions on the enabling and encouraging policies of Government of India to exploit the commercial space segment by Indian Industry targeting both domestic and international market.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

Inauguration of Exhibition by Chairman ISRO

Story of the Week - Archive
Nov 27, 2017 : International Seminar on ISP: ‘Trends and Opportunities for Industry’
Nov 21, 2017 : APRSAF-24 held in Bengaluru
Nov 13, 2017 : ISRO Organises INTROMET-2017
Nov 06, 2017 : CZT Imager of AstroSat measures first phase resolved X-ray polarisation of Crab pulsar
Oct 30, 2017 : 38th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing
Oct 23, 2017 : ETS - A System for Transportation of Small Satellite and Flight Hardware
Oct 17, 2017 : ISRO Celebrates World Space Week-2017

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[Params7]

Latest image of MARS taken by MCCView attachment 21645

This is great. Hope we keep getting closer and closer to Mars.

 

[cyclops]

Not to be paranoid or nothing, but could the recent IRNSS 1H heat shield failure be attributed to certain "foreign parties" that are inimical to our space interests?

 

[indiatester]

Not to be paranoid or nothing, but could the recent IRNSS 1H heat shield failure be attributed to certain "foreign parties" that are inimical to our space interests?

IMHO, it points to the failure of quality control and lack of multiple checks to catch such failures from happening.

 

[Chinmoy]

Indo-Russian collaboration: GLONASS ground station in Bangalore; NavIC’s in Novosibirsk

https://www.geospatialworld.net/blogs/indo-russian-collaboration-glonass-navic/

 

[Indx TechStyle]

ISRO's plan: A rocket that can be made in 3 days

Aditya-L1, India's maiden mission to Sun, scheduled for 2019: ISRO chairman
HIGHLIGHTS

• Mini-PSLV can be built at a cost of just 1/10 of original cost.
• The manufacturing cost of a launch vehicle is generally in the range of Rs 150 crore to Rs 500 crore across the world.
• The Indian space agency has started working on the idea of building this small rocket keeping in mind the emerging market of micro or nano satellites.

NEW DELHI: In a development that will revolutionalise the satellite launch system in the country, Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is developing a small launch vehicle that can be assembled in just three days as compared to 30-40 days for a normal-sized PSLV and can be built at a cost which will be just one-tenth the original manufacturing cost of a PSLV. The manufacturing cost of a launch vehicle is generally in the range of Rs 150 crore to Rs 500 crore across the world.

Dr K Sivan, director of Thiruvananthapuram-based Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC),on the sidelines of an international seminar on 'Indian Space Programme' told TOI, "Isro is busy developing a small launch vehicle which is likely to be ready for launch probably by 2018-end or early-2019. The cost of this vehicle will get drastically reduced by one-tenth of the manufacturing cost of a normal PSLV. However, this rocket will have the total payload capacity of 500 to 700 kg and can launch satellites only up to the polar sun-synchronous orbit or near-earth orbit (500-700 km in altitude)."

India has a slew of satellites in the near-earth orbit that are used for the purpose of earth imaging, weather tracking and reconnaissance.

"The weight of this mini-PSLV will be just 100 tonnes as compared to 300 tonnes of the normal-sized launch vehicle," Dr Sivan said.

The "cost-effective" vehicle programme is in line with Isro chairman A S Kiran Kumar's recent statement that the space agency has been striving to "reduce the cost of access to space" and so that more and more of space technologies can be used for the benefit of the common man.

Explaining the advantage, Dr K Sivan said, "The amount of money used in building a normal-size PSLV rocket can actually be used to manufacture multiple numbers of such mini-PSLVs, which, in turn, can launch several satellites. So, Isro will be able to launch several satellites in less money." Like a normal PSLV, he said, "Such small vehicles will too be capable of launching multiple nano satellites."

Isro has started working on the idea of building this small rocket keeping in mind the emerging market of nano satellites. Till now, satellites of foreign customers are accommodated in launch vehicles only as secondary passengers. With Isro eyeing to capture the market of nano satellites, the small vehicle can be a boon for foreign satellite customers as the rocket can be readied in just three days on demand. On February 15 this year, Isro's workhorse PSLV C37 had launched 104 satellites, mostly of foreign customers, in one go. Likewise on June 23, the agency had launched 30 small satellites of foreign companies along with the primary satellite Cartosat-2.