On 11th July 2023, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) issued an expression of interest (EoI) for the first-of-its-kind Transfer of Technology (ToT) of the small satellite launch vehicle (SSLV) to Indian private Space firms.
- The aim of this initiative is to boost the Indian Private Space Industries.
The recipient of this ToT would be able to grow the small satellite segment in a big way, paving the way for India to become the global hub for such launches.
About Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV):
i.SSLV is a 3 stage Launch Vehicle configured with 3 Solid Propulsion Stages and liquid propulsion based Velocity Trimming Module (VTM) as a terminal stage.
- SSLV is 2m in diameter and 34m in length with lift off weight of ~120 tonnes.
- SSLV is capable of launching 500kg satellite in 500km planar orbit.
ii.So far, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has flown the SSLV only twice and only one of those missions were successful.
- The first developmental flight SSLV-D1/EOS-02 Mission was launched on 7th August 2022 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh(AP). The mission fell short of placing the satellites (Earth observation satellite (EOS-02) and AzaadiSAT satellites) into their intended orbits.
- The 2nd developmental flight SSLV-D2, launched on February 10, 2023, became the first SSLV to launch satellites successfully. The mission placed EOS-07, Janus-1 and AzaadiSAT-2 satellites into 450 km circular orbit.
Note:
For the first time, in August 2019, ISRO’s commercial arm NewSpace India issued an EoI to manufacture 5 Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLV) as the first lot of its target to realise 12 PSLV rockets per year from the domestic private sector.
Voyager Space signed an MoU with ISRO to use Gaganyaan crew spacecraft
On 7th July 2023, the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) and ISRO’s Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Voyager Space to explore opportunities for the utilisation of the Gaganyaan crewed spacecraft to service Starlab space station.
- The MoU was signed during the 4th edition of the Space Economy Leaders Meeting (SLEM) organised under Under India’s presidency of the Group of Twenty (G20).
- The meeting under the theme ‘Towards a New Space ERA (Economy, Responsibility, Alliance)”, was held from 6th to 7th July 2023 in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- The objective of this agreement is to explore opportunities for the utilisation of the Gaganyaan crewed spacecraft to service Starlab space station.
About Voyager Space:
i.Voyager Space is a Private Space firm founded in 2019 in Denver, Colorado, the United States of America (USA).
ii.Starlab is partially funded by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), planned to be launched in 2028 to develop a commercial space station in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO).
iii.Voyager space collaborated with Lockheed Martin, Nanoracks and Airbus Defence to build the Starlab space station.
About Gaganyaan mission:
i.Gaganyaan is India’s first crewed mission by the ISRO to send 3 crew members to an orbit of 400 km for a 3 days mission.
ii.Gaganyaan will consist of two parts, the crew module (CM) also known as Gaganyaan Spacecraft and the service module (SM), which together will form the orbital module.
iii.Gaganyaan Spacecraft will carry India’s heaviest rocket Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV Mk-3), also known as the Launch Vehicle Mark III (LVM3).
