ISRO General News and Updates

[Akula]

View attachment 74717



Kind of a nice logo for a future Indian Space Force imo.

WARNING: FROM R/INDIA

r/India really?

 

[notaname]

Good to see the government and ISRO are supporting them.

English Episode - ISRO chief also present in this one

 

[Okabe Rintarou]

View attachment 74717



Kind of a nice logo for a future Indian Space Force imo.

WARNING: FROM R/INDIA

Good idea. Not possible before 2040.

 

[sorcerer]

View attachment 74717



Kind of a nice logo for a future Indian Space Force imo.

WARNING: FROM R/INDIA

Told ya all...
der are ze alienzzzz

 

[sorcerer]

50 years of India-B’Desh ties: Students from both countries to jointly build Satellite, launch by ISRO

50 years of India-B’Desh ties: Students from both countries to jointly build Satellite, launch by ISRO

To mark 50 years of India-Bangladesh ties and to motivate the next generation of scientific thinkers, the students of both countries will be jointly developing a satellite. The Indian team led by SpaceKidz India would be imparting training to five students from the neighbouring country in the...

www.wionews.com

 

[HariPrasad-1]

In response, it would be fun if ISRO creates a starlink like system for India.
========
Elon Musk’s SpaceX Breaks Record, Launches 143 Satellites In One Go Beating ISRO’s Tally Of 104

Ex ISRO Chief said that ISRO has the capability to launch 250 satellite in one go provided ISRO has 250 satellite to launch.

 

[Karthi]

Gaganyaan’s first unmanned launch slated for December 2021


The launch of the first unmanned mission of Gaganyaan is slated for December, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday. The mission was originally scheduled for launch in December 2020 but had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In her budget speech, Sitharaman said as part of Gaganyaan, India’s manned space mission, four Indian astronauts are being trained on generic space flight aspects in Russia.

“The first unmanned launch is slated for December 2021,” Sitharaman said.


The Rs 10,000 crore Gaganyaan mission aims to send a three-member crew to space for a period of five to seven days by 2022 when India completes 75 years of independence.

The ISRO had started planning for the mission accordingly. The first unmanned mission was planned in December 2020, the second unmanned mission in June 2021.

The final and the main component, the manned mission of Gaganyaan, was scheduled six months later in December 2021, much before the 2022 deadline.

ISRO had earlier indicated that there would be a delay in several missions as the space body’s work has been hit by disruptions due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Among the major projects that have been affected are Chandrayaan-3 and Gaganyaan. Chandrayaan-3, the third mission to the moon, was scheduled in late 2020.

Staff members from ISRO’s different centres were infected with COVID-19 during the pandemic and only essential and process-related work was going on. The related industry was also affected due to the coronavirus lockdown.

 

[sorcerer]

ISRO to launch iBrazilian, Indian startup satellite in first mission of 2021

ISRO to launch iBrazilian, Indian startup satellite in first mission of 2021

Amazonia-1, reportedly the first earth observation satellite entirely developed by Brazil, is the primary payload.'Anand', 'Satish Dhawan' satellite and 'UNITYsat' will be the co-passengers

www.livemint.com

 

[Karthi]

Gaganyaan astronauts may splash off Gujarat coast after space flight

Gujarat may be honored to welcome the Gaganyaan astronauts when they return after their seven-day mission in space. Nilesh Desai, director of the Ahmedabad-based Isro Space Applications Center (SAC), said this in a presentation on Saturday hosted by Space Geeks Mumbai and other organizations.

“As of now, the mission is expected to land in Veraval in Gujarat in the Arabian Sea, and as a contingency measure even an area in the Bay of Bengal is being considered. The exact location will be finalized soon,” he said in the webinar .

The crew will be recovered in 15 to 20 minutes and, thereafter, they will be quarantined. “Only after they complete their quarantine period and return to work, can we declare the end of the mission,” he said. Veraval is known as a center of fishing industries in India and is 6 km from the famous Somnath temple.

Gaganyaan’s unmanned test mission is tentatively scheduled towards the end of the year, and the manned flight next year. The long-awaited takeoff will be from Sriharikota.

The program suffered a slight setback due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Desai said the size of the crew module has been reduced slightly due to the weight limitations of the GSLV Mark 3 rocket.

With a crew of two or three, who trained in Russia, the flight will operate in low earth orbit for 275-400 km, passing over India twice in the morning and twice at night. Throughout the week-long mission, the Isro master control facility in Hassan in Karnataka and the telemetry, tracking and command network in Bengalaru will communicate with the crew, in addition to different communication channels via satellites.

With considerable emphasis on crew safety, Isro evaluates by humans all subsystems of the orbiter module in which the crew will fly, as well as the launch vehicle and launch pad. Desai also announced that the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter’s mission duration has been extended to 7.5 years due to excellent fuel management. “Long life will provide an opportunity for lunar mapping and scientific payloads will generate new knowledge about the moon,” he said.

 

[sorcerer]

India has launched 328 satellites from 33 different countries till date: Dr Jitendra Singh



Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr.Jitendra Singh said that Rs 900 Crore was allocated to ISRO for F.Y. 2020-21for developing capacity for launching of satellites. In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, he said that the Department of Space has been involved in launching satellites of foreign countries since long. Total number of satellites launched till date is 328 from 33 different countries and the revenue earned till date is 25 M USD and 189 M Euros. Moreover, Government of India has established NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), a PSU under Department of Space to commercially launch satellites and become financially self-reliant.


ISRO is striving towards achieving Atmanirbharta in the field of capacity development in launching satellites; therefore, no policy is envisaged for seeking foreign cooperation in this direction.


In another related question, Dr Jitendra Singh said that ISRO facilities are extended to Indian industries and academia for testing their space systems. Satellites from M/s. Space Kidz India and M/s. Syzygy Space Technologies have undergone testing at UR Rao Satellite Centre, ISRO. He said, participation of private sector in space activities in India is expected to result in development of cutting edge Technologies, new applications & services. Overall it will make a bigger impact on space economy, he added.


The Minister said that Government has analysed the issues and concerns about national security while allowing Private companies to participate in space activities and appropriate measures have been taken by means of establishing Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Center (IN-SPACe), an independent nodal agency to authorize, monitor and regulate space activities in the country.

 

[sorcerer]

Training of Astronauts and Progress of Gaganyaan Mission


Posted On: 10 FEB 2021 4:20PM by PIB Delhi



Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr.Jitendra Singh in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today said that ffollowing initiatives have been taken by the Government for Indian leg of crew training:

2. Expert team is constituted to define the training curriculum.
4. Plan finalized for astronaut training building including requisite facilities with regard to Gaganyaan mission. Work order for the same has been released.

The details of progress of Gaganyaan is as follows:

2. The preliminary design of Gaganyaan system is completed.
4. Memorandum of understanding (MoUs) signed and in effect with;

• Indian Air Force for crew management activities for Indian human space flight programme;
• Seven (7) DRDO labs for design and development of human centric products; and
• Academic institutes for development of Microgravity payloads.

2. Major contracts signed and in effect.
4. Crew screening and selection completed. The crew members are currently undergoing generic space flight training at Russia.
6. Human Centric Products: Preliminary design review of various human centric systems such as Space food and Potable water, Crew health monitoring system, Emergency survival kit, Crew medical kit, etc. completed.
8. Hardware realization is in advanced stage for ground test and first unmanned mission.
10. Qualification tests of liquid engines as part of human rating of launch vehicle commenced.

DrJitendra Singh said that as per COVID 19 protocols in Russia and health advisories issued by local authorities, the Astronaut training in Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (GCTC), Russia was halted for a period from 28th March, 2020 to 11th May, 2020. As per the revised COVID 19 protocols the training of Indian astronauts has henceforth resumed since 12th May, 2020. He also informed that the First unmanned mission is planned in December 2021. Second unmanned flight is planned in 2022-23, followed by human spaceflight demonstration.

 

[Karthi]

Isro plans new propulsion for deep space missions

Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is exploring the possibility of developing a new propulsion technology to fuel spacecraft for its future deep space missions.



ISRO is in the process of developing 100W Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTEG) without radio isotope.’ Isro calls it alpha source thermoelectric propulsion technology.

RTEG will have less mass than solar cells of equivalent power and allow more compact spacecraft that can navigate easier in space. Many missions of Nasa and Russia, Besides China’s 2013 Chang’e 3 mission to the moon and its rover Yutu had used RTG.

It will be useful for long duration missions where alternative energy is not available. the development of RTEG is taken up as it is envisaged that it will be a part of Isro’s deep space missions for power generation and thermal management. the system will be capable of operating in vaccum conditions of deep space, dusty, carbon dioxide-rich and corrosive environments. Isro says the RTG’s weight should be 20 kgs or less, with a life span of 20 years or more and survive indefinitely without damage when stored in the atmosphere at temperatures as high as 50 degrees Celsius.

The system should be safe for human handling in close vicinity under all conditions even with nuclear fuel concealed inside … the unit should be resilient to any pre-launch or post-launch explosion so as to not cause any nuclear contamination in the environment. that means ISRO also working in Nuclear propulsion .



After another Mars mission, Isro could be eyeing Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus.

'Orbiter Craft Module Structure' of Chandrayaan-2( OLD pic)

CLASS instrument showing the four quadrants with four SCDs (Swept Charge Devices) each. The electronics is housed in the box behind the detector units. An aluminum door protects the detectors from radiation damage en-route to the Moon. Passive radiators connected to heat pipes provide the required low-temperature environment for the detectors.

 

[Okabe Rintarou]

View attachment 77857


Isro plans new propulsion for deep space missions

Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is exploring the possibility of developing a new propulsion technology to fuel spacecraft for its future deep space missions.



ISRO is in the process of developing 100W Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTEG) without radio isotope.’ Isro calls it alpha source thermoelectric propulsion technology.

RTEG will have less mass than solar cells of equivalent power and allow more compact spacecraft that can navigate easier in space. Many missions of Nasa and Russia, Besides China’s 2013 Chang’e 3 mission to the moon and its rover Yutu had used RTG.

It will be useful for long duration missions where alternative energy is not available. the development of RTEG is taken up as it is envisaged that it will be a part of Isro’s deep space missions for power generation and thermal management. the system will be capable of operating in vaccum conditions of deep space, dusty, carbon dioxide-rich and corrosive environments. Isro says the RTG’s weight should be 20 kgs or less, with a life span of 20 years or more and survive indefinitely without damage when stored in the atmosphere at temperatures as high as 50 degrees Celsius.

The system should be safe for human handling in close vicinity under all conditions even with nuclear fuel concealed inside … the unit should be resilient to any pre-launch or post-launch explosion so as to not cause any nuclear contamination in the environment. that means ISRO also working in Nuclear propulsion .



After another Mars mission, Isro could be eyeing Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus.



View attachment 77858

'Orbiter Craft Module Structure' of Chandrayaan-2( OLD pic)

View attachment 77859

CLASS instrument showing the four quadrants with four SCDs (Swept Charge Devices) each. The electronics is housed in the box behind the detector units. An aluminum door protects the detectors from radiation damage en-route to the Moon. Passive radiators connected to heat pipes provide the required low-temperature environment for the detectors.

RTG is good for unmanned missions. But we need to start working on Fusion Drives for the long term. They will come up by 2050. The work needs to start now.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

View attachment 77857


Isro plans new propulsion for deep space missions

Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is exploring the possibility of developing a new propulsion technology to fuel spacecraft for its future deep space missions.



ISRO is in the process of developing 100W Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTEG) without radio isotope.’ Isro calls it alpha source thermoelectric propulsion technology.

RTEG will have less mass than solar cells of equivalent power and allow more compact spacecraft that can navigate easier in space. Many missions of Nasa and Russia, Besides China’s 2013 Chang’e 3 mission to the moon and its rover Yutu had used RTG.

It will be useful for long duration missions where alternative energy is not available. the development of RTEG is taken up as it is envisaged that it will be a part of Isro’s deep space missions for power generation and thermal management. the system will be capable of operating in vaccum conditions of deep space, dusty, carbon dioxide-rich and corrosive environments. Isro says the RTG’s weight should be 20 kgs or less, with a life span of 20 years or more and survive indefinitely without damage when stored in the atmosphere at temperatures as high as 50 degrees Celsius.

The system should be safe for human handling in close vicinity under all conditions even with nuclear fuel concealed inside … the unit should be resilient to any pre-launch or post-launch explosion so as to not cause any nuclear contamination in the environment. that means ISRO also working in Nuclear propulsion .



After another Mars mission, Isro could be eyeing Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune and Uranus.



View attachment 77858

'Orbiter Craft Module Structure' of Chandrayaan-2( OLD pic)

View attachment 77859

CLASS instrument showing the four quadrants with four SCDs (Swept Charge Devices) each. The electronics is housed in the box behind the detector units. An aluminum door protects the detectors from radiation damage en-route to the Moon. Passive radiators connected to heat pipes provide the required low-temperature environment for the detectors.

This is a much awaited thing. Currently it is only available with US, Russia and China.

 

[Karthi]

For the first time in over five decades of India’s space programme, Isro opened up its facilities to the private sector with two satellites from companies and one from academia being tested in the UR Rao Satellite Centre.

Over the next few months, two private firms will test their engines at Sriharikota spaceport and Thiruvananthapuram rocket centre. Isro will soon give its satellite images to a private firm that offers mapping services.

Sources in URSC said satellites from Tamil Nadu-based Space Kidz India and Bengaluru-based Syzygy Space Technologies have undergone testing.

Isro chairman K Sivan told TOI: “In both cases, we found problems with solar panels and our team is helping them fix them. URSC also tested UNITYsat, which had problems with the separation system which we’re setting right.”

26 proposals under review

UNITYsat is a combination of three satellites designed and built by Jeppiaar Institute of Technology, Sriperumbudur, GH Raisoni College of Engineering, Nagpur and Sri Shakthi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore.

Chennai-based Agnikul Cosmos will be allowed to test its engine at Thiruvananthapuram while Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace’s engine will be tested at Sriharikota, Sivan said.

Also, we MapmyIndia, which builds digital maps and offers GIS services, has approached Isro for high-resolution images. These developments are in line with opening up the space sector to private firms. At least 26 proposals, including those from US-based Amazon Web Services and Bharti Group backed UKbased OneWeb, are being reviewed by Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre.

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Two satellites by Indian startups—SpaceKidz India and Pixxel (incorporated as Sygyzy)—were tested at the UR Rao Satellite Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) in Bengaluru. This is a first for the space agency, which so far has only taken help in manufacturing and fabrication of various parts of satellites and rockets from the Indian industry. Isro helped these two companies fix problems with the solar panels on their respective satellites.

Confirming the development, Isro spokesperson Vivek Singh told HT that the two firms have finished the testing already. In the coming months, these two firms will also test their engines at Sriharikota spaceport and Thiruvananthapuram rocket centre.

“There have been several firms that have worked with ISRO in the past, but these firms are into manufacturing satellites. They are almost through with their development. In our next PSLV launch, they could be our co-passengers,” he said.

Earlier Isro had only provided launch facilities to private firms at a cost. In June 2020, Isro chairman K Sivan had announced that the agency will open its labs, testing facilities and quality facilities to private companies so they don’t have to invest in infrastructure. An independent body, Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), was set up to not only to oversee the space activity of the private sector, but also to handhold and share Isro facilities. The decision of the body would be binding on Isro as well.

Just eight months after this announcement was made, Isro is ready to launch commercial satellites in a PSLV mission scheduled for later this month. It will be the first mission wherein satellites by the Indian industry will be commercially launched by Isro.

A satellite designed by students from SpaceKidz India had been launched by Isro as an experiment in January 2019 using the fourth stage of the PSLV—which usually goes to waste—as the platform for the KalamSat.

The PSLV C-51 mission will carry a Brazilian satellite Amazonia-1 under a commercial arrangement made by the NewSpace India limited, the commercial arm of Isro. In addition, the launch vehicle will carry 20 passenger satellites—including one nanosatellite by Isro, the two satellites under testing, and UnitySat, a combination of three satellites designed and built by Jeppiaar Institute of Technology, Sriperumbudur, GH Raisoni College of Engineering, Nagpur and Sri Shakthi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore.

Another startup Skyroot is working towards developing a launch vehicle that is likely to be launched by the end of the year. Isro will share their spaceports—the existing one at Sriharikota and the upcoming one in Thoothukudi—with industries for such missions

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Indian Space Research Organisation and location and navigation technology solutions provider MapmyIndia announced an initiative to partner together to offer India’s best, and fully indigenous, mapping portal and geospatial services.

It combines the power of MapmyIndia’s digital maps and technologies with ISRO’s catalogue of satellite imagery and earth observation data, according to MapmyIndia’s CEO and Excutive Director, Rohan Verma.

He termed it a path-breaking milestone in India’s journey towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, wherein Indian users would not be dependent on foreign organisations for maps, navigation and geospatial services, and leverage made-in-India solutions instead. “You don’t need Goo*le Maps/Earth any longer”, Verma said in the headline in an article on LinkedIn.

According to ISRO, the Department of Space (DoS) — ISRO comes under it — has joined hands with MapmyIndia to combine their geospatial expertise and build holistic solutions by leveraging their geoportals. DoS entered into an MoU with geospatial technology company CE Info Systems Pvt Ltd, which owns MapmyIndia, on Thursday.

Under the partnership, the combined geospatial expertise of the DoS and CE Info Systems would be leveraged through their respective Geoportals, according to Bengaluru-headquartered ISRO.

The collaboration will enable them to jointly identify and build holistic geospatial solutions utilising the earth observation datasets, ‘NavIC’, Web Services and APIs (application programming interface) available in MapmyIndia, ‘Bhuvan’, ‘VEDAS’ and ‘MOSDAC’ geoportals, the space agency said in a statement.

Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) called NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation, is India’s own navigation system, developed by ISRO. Bhuvan is the national geo-portal developed and hosted by ISRO comprising geospatial data, services and tools for analysis.

VEDAS (VisualisationofEarthobservationDataandArchivalSystem) is an online geoprocessing platform using optical, microwave, thermal and hyperspectral EO data covering applications particularly meant for academia, research and problem solving, according to ISRO.

MOSDAC (Meteorological and Oceanographic Satellite Data Archival Centre)is a data repository for all the meteorological missions of ISRO and deals with weather related information, oceanography and tropical water cycles. Verma said there are many reasons why Indians are better off with an indigenous solution for maps and geospatial services.

“MapmyIndia, being a responsible, local, Indian company, ensures that its maps reflect the true sovereignty of the country, depicting Indias borders as per Government of India, and hosts its maps in India,” he said.

Through the combined partnership with ISRO, MapmyIndias end user maps, apps and services will now integrate with ISROs huge catalogue of satellite imagery and earth observation data, a MapmyIndia statement said.

It would be a much better, more detailed and comprehensive, as well as privacy-centric, hyper local and indigenous mapping solution for Indians, compared to foreign map apps and solutions, it said. Verma said foreign mapping solutions come with a lot of hidden costs.

For example, foreign search engines and companies claim to offer “free” maps, but in reality they make money by targeting the same users with advertising based on invading user privacy and auctioning those users private location and movement data,” he claimed. “This should be very alarming to all citizens”.

“On the other hand, MapmyIndia has an ethical point of view against advertising led business models of such companies, and hence, does not have an advertising business model.By using MapmyIndia maps and applications instead of the foreign map apps, users can better protect their privacy,” he said.

The “sustainable and direct, clean business model” ensures that MapmyIndias maps and apps can be kept free of cost as well as free of ads for users, according to him.

“MapmyIndias maps cover all 7.5 lakh villages, 7500+ cities at street and building-level, connected by all 63 lakh kilometres of road network pan India and within cities, in total providing maps for an unparalleled 3+ crore places across India,” the company statement said.

 

[Karthi]

India plans sustained human presence in space: What’s more in store

Move over Gaganyaan, India is planning to have a sustained human presence in space. The Department of Space has envisaged a national effort to meet the goal of successful demonstration of human spaceflight capability and to achieve the vision of sustained human presence in space. Union Minister Jitendra Singh had said that India’s maiden human spaceflight module ‘Gaganyaan’ will be launched after the second unmanned mission planned in 2022-23.

More in store

The Department of Space has put up for public consultation on the website of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the draft “Humans in Space Policy for India — 2021” and guidelines and procedures for its implementation. DoS believes that given the collaborative nature of human spaceflight due to its multi-disciplinary nature, it is essential to have a policy-framework, which not only fosters partnerships but also addresses proliferation concerns and compliance to existing policies, laws and treaties.

According to the draft, human-spaceflight programme needs to be sustained over longer periods to deliver tangible benefits. Hence, it is essential that the policy enables sustained presence in low earth orbit and beyond through reliable, robust, safe and affordable means by undertaking appropriate capacity building measures like collaborations, infrastructure development, facilities modernisation, technology development and human resource development. This would also encourage new industries, create high technology jobs, enable socio-economic growth and further enhance India’s stature and role in space.

“The Humans in Space Policy aims for sustained human presence in space as an instrument for development, innovation and foster collaborations in alignment with national interests,” the draft read.

Various technological elements such as development of human rated launch vehicle, environmental control and life support system, crew escape system, deceleration system, crew selection and training, crew recovery operations, development of human centric products, and micro gravity experiments shall be undertaken by department utilising expertise of ISRO, national research institutions, academia, industry and other organisations.

As part of demonstration of human space flight capability, department shall

undertake developmental unmanned missions prior to manned mission. A standardised approach towards safety and reliability shall be adopted for

mission assurance and success

Indian human space program envisages undertaking the demonstration of human spaceflight to LEO in the short-term and will lay the foundation for a sustained Indian human space exploration programme in the long run. DoS with mandate to carry out space activities in India shall define a roadmap with regard to human space activities.

In order to pursue the objectives as stipulated in Humans in space policy, the necessary technology and gap areas shall be identified. The thrust areas thus identified shall become part of technology roadmap of ISRO. The thrust areas will include key technology elements e.g. Regenerative life support systems, development of Rendezvous and docking systems, Inflatable habitats, extravehicular activity suits etc.

Indian human space programme involves various national institutions, organisations and stakeholders. A suitable mechanism shall be constituted to ensure effective coordination and seamless execution among various agencies involved. Announcement of opportunities shall be floated for encouraging the participation of national research institutes/academia/industries.

 

[sorcerer]

India & Australia expand space cooperation

Read more at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.co...ofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

 

[mandestiny]

ISRO seems loosing it track. No information on next planet/moon missions like CY3,MOM2,venus,jupiter. They talked about it earlier, now no information on it. Other space agencies moving very fast.

 

[Indx TechStyle]

ISRO seems loosing it track. No information on next planet/moon missions like CY3,MOM2,venus,jupiter. They talked about it earlier, now no information on it. Other space agencies moving very fast.

They couldn't spend even 50% of last year's budget due to corona. Priorities of this year are pulling off human spaceflight and launching more satellites for communication window. Rest is postponed.

 

[mandestiny]

They couldn't spend even 50% of last year's budget due to corona. Priorities of this year are pulling off human spaceflight and launching more satellites for communication window. Rest is postponed.

Yeah this is the problem, i am not taking about corona. But world space agencies are working, at one time ISRO talks about 12 launches/year or more then that, that also impacted. Somewhere down the line ISRO looses the track. Look at DRDO , i think first time they test so many things in corona time.