Indian Space Capabilities

[SRP]

RLV-TD Mission to be Delayed At least Till the Year End

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD) mission, India’s first step towards building a space shuttle, will be delayed at least till the year end.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) originally planned to have the mission in October. But tests are still progressing on the prototype here at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC). “Some more work is pending on the technology demonstrator. We have a few tests to complete and we will have the mission either towards December end or by the beginning of next year,” said VSSC director Dr K Sivan. VSSC is in charge of constructing the prototype.

Initial plans were to have the mission in mid-2015. But continuing works and an extremely hectic launch schedule had forced the ISRO to put off the mission. The space agency also plans to have a commercial Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) mission, possibly in November. The PSLV-CA 29 mission is scheduled to place a bouquet of Singapore satellites in the orbit.

RLV-TD, which will be unmanned, comprises a space plane-like part riding atop a booster rocket. It will be launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota. The RLV-TD weighs 1.5 tonnes and it will glide back to earth from a height of 70 kilometres. ISRO, which has twice successfully demonstrated the re-entry technology, plans to recover the RLV-TD from the Bay of Bengal.

The RLV-TD will be the first of a series of flight-tests before ISRO can design and build a real vehicle.

RLV-TD Mission to be Delayed At least Till the Year End -The New Indian Express


Some insight about the project
Reusable Launch Vehicle - Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD) - Indian Space Projects

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

Not just payload fairing , even the nose cone of the soild boosters also look redesigned to something similar to Ariane 5 ...... both modification must have something to do with drag reduction IMO .

Based on last year's GSLV Mark III's experimental flight, modifications have been done to solid rocket S-200 motors to change dynamic pressure and forces and ground tests have been done.

GSLV Mark III rocket modified, ground tests done: ISRO - The Economic Times

 

[Hindustani78]

NARL Director A. Jayaraman interacts with students during Space Week celebrations at Regional Science Centre in Tirupati on Sunday.—Photo: K.V. Poornachandra Kumar
World Space Week celebrations begin - The Hindu


NARL Director inaugurates travelling exhibition on activities of ISRO
It will be an array of events this week, depicting science in its various forms through competitions, programmes and workshops, which coincides with the World Space Week.

The weeklong event, organised by the Regional Science Centre in association with Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota (SDSC-SHAR), began at the former premises here on Sunday. National Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NARL Gadanki) Director A. Jayaraman, who is also the science centre’s local chairman, inaugurated the SDSC’s travelling exhibition on activities of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) apart from the weeklong expo. He explained to the students the importance of the week in the global perspective.

 

[Lonely Hermit]

 

[Mike_Brando]

Call me when India beats China,America and Russia in space programme(waste of time)

Lungi,you are way out of your league here!!Just remember that our Bengali ancestors ruled over yours for more than 700 years.You and your forefathers were always under our feet and that's the reality.Now stop derailing this beautiful thread!!

so did afghanistan.

Why do you have to prove yourself an anti-national every time you decide to open that trap of yours!If you hate India so much then why for the love of Jesus Christ are you still living in this country!If i were you,i would have packed my bags and left this "3rd world crap"(as claimed by you) a long time ago....

 

[jamahir]

Why do you have to prove yourself an anti-national every time you decide to open that trap of yours!If you hate India so much then why for the love of Jesus Christ are you still living in this country!If i were you,i would have packed my bags and left this "3rd world crap"(as claimed by you) a long time ago....

so you anger is because i acknowledged that there are other societies too in this world ( other than india ) and they too have achieved similar to or more than india??

nationalism is the disease that has gotten india the tag "suicide capital of the world"... you should redirect your efforts to removing problems portrayed by this thread ( 40% rise in farmer suicides in Maharashtra ) instead of getting all jingoistic.

if india is liveable to a extent it is because of people like me who see the problems around us and try to provide solutions.

lastly, where is your anger when bjp has made india subservient to nato interests??

 

[Odysseus]

Quick Look Into ISRO’s Contribution To Society​

The admirable efforts put in by the ISRO over the years have resulted in huge growth in the field of space science and technology. The advancements have contributed to the welfare of the common man in the country.

The growth charted by the ISRO and its units across the country have been traced at the Space Expo 2015 that is under way at the Kanakakkunnu Palace as part of the World Space Week celebrations.

The week-long exhibition, which commenced on Monday, has 17 booths that focus on diverse aspects of space science applications. Among the technology applications that have been showcased are the services offered by INSAT/GSAT satellites in the area of tele-education and telemedicine, ISRO’s Disaster Management Support (DMS) programme, monitoring and tracking of depressions and cyclones, and the prediction of landfall through Early Warning Systems.

The first segment of stalls touches upon earth observation. Various stages of ISRO’s remote sensing programme are explained. The efforts commenced in 1970 with a pilot project undertaken to identify coconut root-wilt disease in Kerala. The project led to the development of the Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) satellites.

The expo showcases how IRS satellites have helped in agricultural crops inventory, handling drought, forest fires, landslides, earthquakes, monitoring of water bodies and identification of potential fishing zones.

In addition, information pertaining to various space science missions such as the Mars Orbiter Mission, ASTROSAT, Chandrayaan 2 and Aditya are also conveyed at the Space Expo.

Quick look into ISRO’s contribution to society - Odisha Samaya

 

[Hindustani78]

ISRO eyes a global role in satellite navigation - The Hindu

Updated: October 9, 2015 21:13 IST
Four of the seven IRNSS satellites are in orbit
The Indian Space Research Organisation has unveiled plans to gradually make its regional satellite navigation system global — akin to powerful position-telling systems such as the U.S.’ GPS and the Russian GLONASS.

ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar said four of the seven Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) satellites are in orbit and the last three spacecraft would be added in orbit by March 2016. The IRNSS would provide self-reliance in the strategically important area of position-related information, he said at a users’ conference on global navigation satellite systems on Thursday.

The focus now was on completing the regional constellation and extending it to South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries. “After that we will look at taking it gradually over the entire globe, may be in less than a decade. It could be done by adding a set of regional satellites over adjoining countries. We are working towards this with other countries – [South] Korea and the Gulf nations, to name a few,” Mr. Kiran Kumar said.

The signals from the regional system were already available 1,500 km beyond the borders.

In April this year, ISRO and the Airports Authority of India also completed GAGAN, focussed on airlines, airports and the civil aviation sector but applicable to land and sea-based services. GAGAN enhances the GPS-derived details of location and time of objects or persons.

Both IRNSS and GAGAN, he said, would drive an unlimited set of personal, public and industrial users, from transportation, railways, forestry, farming, agriculture and security. Around 200 navigation receiver sets built by industry and using ISRO design would be out soon.

 

[Chanakya's_Chant]

India, Pakistan, Training Together, For Space - Learning the ropes of Rocketry, the building block of a Space programme.

Indian and pakistan nationals loading Judi-Dart into launcher. This is a part of their training in launching meteorological rockets in connection with the IIOE. Left to Right: D. Eashwardas, Indian Trainee and Salim Mehmud, Pakistan trainee.

- Space for Development: US-Indian Space Relations 1955 -1976

 

[born]

Antrix begins global pitch for GSLV - The Hindu
Two months after the GSLV’s second continuous success, ISRO’s commercial arm, Antrix, has started promoting the launch capabilities of the medium lift vehicle among international spacecraft manufacturers.

V.S. Hegde, Antrix Corporation’s chairman and managing director, said there were good opportunities for the GSLV to bid for the many satellites being made in the 2,000 to 2,200 kg class.

“We are in discussions with many satellite manufacturers across the world for the [already established] PSLV and now the GSLV. There is a very good response to the GSLV,” including from U.S. manufacturers, he said on the sidelines of a seminar here on Friday.

The GSLV, he said, could place in space two-tonne communication satellites in the medium-Earth, geosynchronous (36,000 km) orbit; as well as take heavier ones to lower distances.

“Space agencies making two-tonne communication satellites will be very much interested if we can offer the GSLV now, or soon. There is definitely a shortage of launches [of its kind] as 1,000-1,500 small to medium-sized satellites are estimated to go up in the next two or three years for various applications.

In spite of such heavy demand, “We are not commercial; the GSLV and the PSLV have to first meet national needs,” Dr. Hegde said.

Big PSLV contracts

The PSLV would launch a 500-kg Earth observation satellite of Singapore ST Electronics in mid-December. The flight would be a full paid launch and carry five smaller Singapore university satellites along.

By 2017-end, Antrix would execute 23 paid PSLV launches, including the 900-kg German environment mapper EnMap.

Antrix, which made business of Rs. 1,800 crore for 2014–15, expects it to touch Rs. 2,000 crore in the current year, Dr. Hegde said..

There are good opportunities for the GSLV to bid for the many satellites being made in the 2,000 to 2,200 kg class.

V.S. Hegde,Antrix Corporation’s chairman

and managing director

 

[Hindustani78]

ISRO to launch six Singapore-made satellites in December - The Hindu


India will launch six Singapore-made satellites, including a dedicated 400 kg spacecraft for carrying out surveillance missions for maritime and border security, in mid-December onboard PSLV-C29.

The six satellites will be launched on PSLV-C29 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh on December 16, 2015.

Among them is a 400 kg satellite that can conduct surveillance missions for maritime and border security, The Strait Times reported.

The satellites will then hover about 550 km above ground for up to five years.

The December 16 launch comes four years after Singapore put its first home-grown micro-satellite in space. Since the launch of the fridge-size X-Sat in 2011, smaller satellites have subsequently been launched by Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

This time round, the satellites are being built from scratch by teams from defence manufacturer Singapore Technologies Electronics (ST Electronics), National University of Singapore and NTU.

The 400 kg TeLEOS-1 is the biggest and first Singapore-made commercial earth observation satellite to orbit in space, said ST Electronics communication and sensor systems group president Tang Kum Chuen.

The satellite will carry a camera that can take pictures at ground resolution of up to 1 metre.

Mr. Tang said the TeLEOS-1, expected to last up to five years, will also be able to conduct missions such as disaster monitoring, coastal surveillance, urban planning and homeland security.

The other smaller satellites, designed and built by NUS and NTU, will last from between six months and three years.

NTU, which has put four satellites in space, will add three more at the end of the year to monitor tropical climate and test experimental satellite-based communication.

NUS’s two new satellites will conduct scientific experiments and analyse the earth’s surface.

Besides Singapore, the other countries in the region that have their own satellites in space include Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.

Dr. Tim Huxley, executive director of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (Asia), said the upcoming satellite launch is a “significant step” in Singapore’s space programme, which started 20 years ago.

“Singapore recognises the importance of using space technology for all sorts of purposes, from tracking maritime traffic or finding forest fires, to military purposes to know what regional countries are doing on land, air and sea,” Dr. Huxley said.

 

[egodoc222]

so you anger is because i acknowledged that there are other societies too in this world ( other than india ) and they too have achieved similar to or more than india??

nationalism is the disease that has gotten india the tag "suicide capital of the world"... you should redirect your efforts to removing problems portrayed by this thread ( 40% rise in farmer suicides in Maharashtra ) instead of getting all jingoistic.

if india is liveable to a extent it is because of people like me who see the problems around us and try to provide solutions.

lastly, where is your anger when bjp has made india subservient to nato interests??

Get a life!! Your stupid post add nothing to the thread...You are an elite member lol?! You got that just bcos you post anti India bull sh!t posts!!
India is livable bcos for you?
Dumbo!!

 

[jamahir]

Get a life!! Your stupid post add nothing to the thread...You are an elite member lol?! You got that just bcos you post anti India bull sh!t posts!!
India is livable bcos for you?
Dumbo!!

go have some tea... it will calm you down... and tomorrow, resign from your software coolie company or mba cranks workshop and join the "aam aadmi party" at least... you will be actually contributing to humanity that way.

 

[egodoc222]

go have some tea... it will calm you down... and tomorrow, resign from your software coolie company or mba cranks workshop and join the "aam aadmi party" at least... you will be actually contributing to humanity that way.

Typical apptard!! Lol
Contributing to humanity? Lol
I'm surgeon 3 yrsgovt sevice on 100s of medical camps later ....I've given back to the society a lot more than you or apptards like you can in a life time...
I've seen birth I've seen death
I've interacted with the rich the poor the middle class....
Upper caste,lower caste...
Hindu Muslim Christian...
You name it....I've seen what India is on ground rather like you sitting in a ac room typing on expensive laptop...bitching about problems of the farmers?
Tone down your ego...don't let your hate for particular religion blind your conscience!!
Now you have that tea and think!!!

 

[TejasMk3]

Class of 1974: Rocket science & reminiscences
October 19, 2015, 3:01 PM IST Arun Ram
When the scientists who’d developed India’s first liquid propulsion engine assembled for a reunion, it was time travel

Two Saturdays ago, while scientists at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram were busy packing a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) for a commercial launch at the end of the month, a 74-year-old man with a long silver mane and beard sat in the lobby of a nearby hotel, doing the countdown for another important event.

S Nambinarayanan, a former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientist, was awaiting his team of 1974 that had put together India’s first liquid propulsion engine in Vernon, France, in collaboration with French scientists. Now retired and scattered across the globe, the septuagenarians had planned a get-together more than 40 years after they embarked on the five-year mission that resulted in the Vikas engine. The rocket the VSSC scientists were packing would be the 32nd PSLV to be powered by Vikas. And the names of these veterans, as usual, would find no mention when India celebrates another successful satellite launch.

But that Saturday evening, the class of ’74 had not assembled to crib. By 6pm, Nambi was joined in the lobby by R Natarajan who had worked on liquid propellant storage systems in Vernon, A Chandran, who succeeded Nambi as the team leader in 1978, and H R S Mani, who worked on quality control. As the lobby turned noisy, the old boys moved to the banquet hall. It was an all-male team of 53 that developed the engine in Vernon. Twelve of them were no more. Of the rest, 25 turned up, most with their wives.

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatime...ds/2015/10/rocket-scientists-get-together.jpg
(The Indian team with French scientists after the successful ground test of the Vikas engine in Vernon, France, in 1985.)

Soon, the women – most of them Malayalis – went into a huddle, recalling their adventures in France. Before the team left for Vernon, T N Seshan, then director of ISRO administration, had arranged a month-long tuition in French for the scientists, but not for their spouses. By the end of 1974, the scientists and their families had established themselves as a community in St Marcel, a neighbourhood where the great impressionist painter Claude Monet had lived earlier in the century.

“Remember how we challenged the men that we would learn French in a month?” Nambi’s wife Meena was overheard telling a long-lost friend. This confidence in the women stemmed from their interactions with vegetable vendors and grocers who had made a beeline to the St Marcel Indian community. “At the end of three months however, we only graduated from saying ‘merci’ to ‘merci beaucoup’. And it was the vendors who were speaking Malayalam,” she finished, as laughter turned to shrieks.

“Attention, ladies and gentlemen.” It was Thomas Jayakumar, the master of ceremonies, calling the crowd’s attention. Someone joked that it was the ‘Vernon after-effect’ that made Jayakumar – who was in charge of control systems of the rocket engine at the time – believe he was still a ‘controller’. He wanted each scientist to take the mic and speak for two minutes – “just two minutes,” he reiterated – about the unforgettable days of developing the Vikas engine.

(This photo was clicked during a get-together of Indian space scientists in Thiruvananthapuram.)

As the veterans – M K Narendranath, S Rajarathinam, M K G Nair, K S Krishnamurthy – spoke about pride and prejudice evident during the development of Vikas, everyone nodded in confirmation. “Every time a PSLV lifts off, I get goose bumps,” said Kailasanathan. “Anybody remembers Nelson,” Chandran asked, of the French driver who drove the Indian scientists around on cold nights, and a score of hands went up.

Whenever the speeches got too serious, instrumentation specialist D Subramanian and IISc alumnus H R S Mani made catcalls a la backbenchers to bring the laughter back. But it all turned poignant when Sivakumari, the widow of scientist Manikantan fought back tears as she reminisced her happier days. “I don’t know how to thank you all,” she sobbed, “for remembering me even 20 years after my husband passed away.”

The group discussed other personal tragedies including scientist SC Ghosh’s wife delivering a stillborn, and another scientist’s daughter being born with a lung problem. After the speeches, scientists D Sarvesan, Manjunath Nayak, Jacob Devadas, P P Kailasanathan, M Parasu Pillai, C Rajappan, D Anandan, Murugesan and Krishnan Potti chatted with Unni Paramangalath, who acted as their office administrator, on how the team meticulously documented their daily experience at the French propulsion facility SEP and dispatched them to India under diplomatic cover. These were to prove invaluable reference material once the team returned to put together India’s first liquid propulsion engine.

As the evening progressed, when the core team members gathered around Nambi, their father figure, references to the infamous ‘ISRO spy case’ of the 1990s were unavoidable. Nambinarayanan was arrested on November 30, 1994 on charges of selling India’s ‘rocket secrets’ to Pakistan through two Maldivian women spies. The scientist was tortured in the custody of the Kerala police and the Intelligence Bureau for 50 days. In 1996, the CBI found the ‘spy case’ a figment of imagination, and found fault with the investigators. The Kerala government ordered a reinvestigation which the Supreme Court dismissed in April 1998.

Team Vernon is convinced it was an international conspiracy to halt India’s leap in space. “Nambi has come out clean, but India lost out on precious years, and ISRO a chairman it deserved,” observes P S Krishnamurthy.

Then, to avert a mournful mood, someone suggested a drink. However the hotel, as per the new Kerala government rules, wouldn’t serve liquor. “But if you have brought your drink, ice cubes are on the house,” announced Nambi. And out came nip bottles and hip flasks. They raised their glasses, and one of them announced: “Now, that’s what you call liquid propulsion!”


Class of 1974: Rocket science & reminiscences - TOI Blogs