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Indian Space Capabilities

ISRO to miss 12-12-12 launch date for SARAL: sources

BANGALORE (PTI): ISRO may be adept at putting satellites into precise orbit but now appears set to fall flat on its publicly-pronounced date to launch Indo-French spacecraft "SARAL" on 12-12-12.

ISRO sources confirmed on Thursday that with technical issues cropping up and additional tests proposed to improve reliability, the blast-off on December 12 (12-12-12) is ruled out.

ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) top-brass are slated to undertake on November 27 mission readiness review vis-a-vis the launch. "The launch is now likely in January-February", an official of the Bangalore-headquartered space agency said.

In September, ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan said SARAL would be launched onboard PSLV-C20 from the spaceport of Sriharikota on December 12.

"PSLV-C20 will be assembled in about 25 days in Sriharikota and the satellite will be launched on December 12, 2012. As somebody said it's 12-12-12 (launch date)," he said on September 12 at the Bangalore Space Expo 2012 here.

Along with SARAL, ISRO was also slated to launch four foreign micro-satellites on board PSLV-C20.

ISRO officials said SARAL is a small satellite mission with payloads -- Argos and Altika -- from French space agency CNES for study of ocean parameters towards enhancing the understanding of the ocean state conditions which are otherwise not covered by the in-situ measurements.

The satellite has been built by ISRO, which would also take care of the launch services.

SARAL will provide data products to operational and research user communities, in support of marine meteorology and sea state forecasting; operational oceanography; seasonal forecasting; climate monitoring; ocean, earth system and climate research, the officials said.

ISRO to miss 12-12-12 launch date for SARAL: sources - Brahmand.com
 
ISRO to launch water rockets at Kakkanad

Nov 25, 2012, 07.08AM IST TNN

KOCHI: Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will launch model water rockets at the Sarabhai Science Park, Kakkanad, as part of the CBSE state youth festival to teach students about space technology and make them familiar with building rockets.

The rocket will be launched on Thursday and Friday to teach students what rocket technology is. A water rocket is a device which moves by the expulsion of pressurized water through its nozzle. These are working rocket models which are built with pressurized plastic soft drink bottles.

The CBSE school state youth festival will be held from November 28 to December 1.

Around 11,000 students from CBSE schools in the state are expected to %participate in the event, said CBSE school managements association secretary and festival general convener Indira Rajan.!

ISRO to launch water rockets at Kakkanad - TOI Mobile | The Times of India Mobile Site
 
any news when the GSLV mark III will be launched.

I am not happy the AMCA design has to be completed in dec-12, hypersonic test was told in jan 12, the Nirbhay missile test don't know where?/?????????????????????????????////
 
Nose Cone Adaptor (NCA) of GSLV MK-III Delivered to VSSC : HAL

The first Nose Cone Adaptor (NCA) Assembly-V2 version of GSLV MK-III was handed over to Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre
(VSSC) of ISRO in Bangalore on November 10,2012.


The Nose Cone Adaptor (NCA) is an intricate riveted structural assembly of S200 stage (solid booster stage) of Geo-stationary
Satellite Launch Vehicle MK-III. The S200 solid booster stage is attached to the main core vehicle
through NCA assembly. The assembly is cylindrical in shape, 3200 mm in diameter and 1600 mm in height . The assembly is delivered to ISRO in a record time of six months from the receipt of drawings.

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The first Nose Cone Adaptor (NCA) Assembly-V2 version of GSLV MK-III was handed over to Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre
(VSSC) of ISRO in Bangalore on November 10,2012.


The Nose Cone Adaptor (NCA) is an intricate riveted structural assembly of S200 stage (solid booster stage) of Geo-stationary
Satellite Launch Vehicle MK-III. The S200 solid booster stage is attached to the main core vehicle
through NCA assembly. The assembly is cylindrical in shape, 3200 mm in diameter and 1600 mm in height . The assembly is delivered to ISRO in a record time of six months from the receipt of drawings.

Nose Cone Adaptor (NCA) of GSLV MK-III Delivered to VSSC : HAL | idrw.org
 
GSLV's next launch in April: Veeraraghavan

PUNE: Director of Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) P S Veeraraghavan has said that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is well on course to launching its GSLV space mission with indigenously built cryogenic engine in April 2013.

"Most of the systems for the launch are ready and we are now into the final leg of certain tests, which will validate the mission involving indigenous cryogenic engine," Veeraraghavan told reporters on the sidelines of a seminar on 'Aerospace and related mechanisms' here on Thursday. The Thiruvananthapuram-based VSSC is the lead centre of ISRO for development of satellite launch vehicles and associated technologies.

The GSLV mission's first flight, 'D3', using ISRO designed and built cryogenic engine, had failed in April 2010 due to the malfunctioning of fuel booster turbo pump. The launch vehicle was carrying a 2,200 kg GSAT-4 payload.

"We did a thorough analysis of the D3 flight and identified the reasons behind its failure," Veeraraghavan said. "The analysis called for a redesign of certain components in the cryogenic propulsion system and the same has now been addressed and is being put through multiple testing," he said.

"Most tests have been completed except for the high altitude test, which validates the mission of our cryogenic engine. We hope to complete this and launch the GSLV mission by April 2013," Veeraraghavan said.

Asked about the Chandrayaan-2 lunar mission, Veeraraghavan said, "The immediate focus is on the launch of the Mars Orbiter Mission that is expected to happen in October/November 2013. We have to ensure that the launch happens by the targeted slot. Otherwise, we won't get a slot for another two years," he said. India plans to send a spaceship near Mars and collect important scientific information as part of the orbiter mission.

He said, "Chandrayaan-2, which is a joint programme with the Russian Federal Space Agency, has been delayed due to some major reversals suffered by Russia in their launch vehicles, including their mission to Mars, last year. The Russians have decided that they will give a lander, which is the most complex of the Chandrayaan-2 elements, only after flying the same at least once."

Initial plans chalked out under the joint programme, provided for the launch of Chandrayaan-2 by using a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), in 2014. It includes a lunar orbiter and a lunar rover to be made by the ISRO centres and a lander built by the Russian space agency.

The mission will use and test various new technologies and conduct new experiments. The wheeled rover will move on the lunar surface and will pick up soil or rock samples for on-site chemical analysis. The data will be sent to earth through the Chandrayaan-2 orbiter.

Veeraraghavan said, "Developing high temperature thermal protection system; new materials with lower weights, higher strength, guidance and control; and air-breathing propulsion system are major challenges in the efforts to reduce the cost of launching a space mission. For now, the cost of launching 1 kg of payload into an orbit is $ 20,000 and very few countries can afford that."

He said, "Ongoing efforts in the US, Europe and India are aimed at reducing this cost initially to $ 2,000 per kg payload and eventually to $ 200 per kg payload. This requires good quality high temperature thermal protection system, particularly for situations like a hypersonic re-entry where the material has to take very high temperature and load."

"The VSSC is working on the next variant of GSLV Mark III launch vehicles that will make India totally self-reliant in the area of launch vehicles, Veeraraghavan said. The centre is further working on development of resusable launch vehicles that can deliver a spacecraft into the orbit and return for a repeat use. This will bring down the cost of space transport."

Nearly 450 delegates from premier research labs, defence and academic organizations and industry are participating in the seminar that will address some of the current issues related to aerospace mechanisms that are critical for satellite launch vehicles, spacecraft, missiles and combat aircraft, among others. The Armament Research and Development Establishment (ARDE) is hosting the event, organized by the Indian National Society for Aerospace and Related Mechanisms (INSARM).

Baba Kalyani, chairman and managing director of Bharat Forge; Prahalada, vice-chancellor of the Defence Institute of Advanced Technology; George Koshy, national president of INSARM; Anil Datar, director of ARDE and several other prominent persons were present on the occasion.

GSLV's next launch in April: Veeraraghavan - The Times of India
 
Whats the speciality of plasma wind tunnel ? Is that only applicable for space vehicles ?

Ya, plasma wind tunnels are used to demonstrate performance and evaluate the Thermal Protection System (TPS) material on reentry vehicles like crew modules. The crew module when re-enters the atmosphere will be subjected to severe heating. To survive such an environment, crew module is provided with an outer TPS made of ablative materials. To test the characteristics of such TPS materials, scaled model of crew module is subjected to plasma wind tunnel testing with very high air temperature, heat flux and pressure.
 
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