ISRO Launched Vikram-S, India’s First Privately Built Rocket
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) launched Vikram-S, the country’s first privately produced rocket on Friday at 11:30 am, from its spaceport in Sriharikota, roughly 115 kilometres from Chennai.
According to Skyroot Aerospace, the rocket’s developer, the rocket successfully completed the launch and reached an 89.5 km peak height around 12 p.m. The rocket bears Vikram Sarabhai’s name, who is revered as the founder of India’s space industry. The mission has been given the name “Prarambh,” which means “beginning,” in an effort to represent a fresh start.
This is definitely a fresh prarambh (start) for the private space sector, according to Dr. Jitendra Singh, federal minister of state (independent charge), science and technology, atomic energy, and space, who was present for the launch on Friday. Singh praised India on reaching this important milestone and hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter, writing, “Congratulations India! a significant historical site under PM @narendramodi! Indian #StartUps have reached a turning point! A fresh start for #ISRO! The first private rocket, Vikram-S, has entered orbit.
“Launched! As the first private rocket of India to grace the skies, Vikram-S makes space history. We appreciate your presence at this historic event. We’ll have more flight information soon. Keep an eye out! Tweeted by Skyroot Aerospace.
“Today, we launched India’s first private rocket, making history. It is a representation of the new India and the “Prarambh” of a glorious future. Co-founder of Skyroot Aerospace Pawan Kumar Chandana stated.
The VKS is a single-stage spin-stabilized solid propellant rocket with a mass of roughly 545 kg that was created by Hyderabad-based startup business Skyroot Aerospace Pvt Ltd (SAPL).
The first startup to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with ISRO for the launch of its rockets was Skyroot. Prarambh will be the maiden flight for Skyroot Aerospace, as well as the first private launch in the nation. Three payloads in total, including one from an international customer, will be carried into space by it.
According to Skyroot Aerospace, Vikram-S will help with the testing and validation of many of the technologies used in the Vikram series of orbital class space launch vehicles, including many sub-systems and technologies that will be assessed during the pre-lift-off and post-lift-off periods of the launch.
According to the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), a single-window autonomous agency under the government’s department of space designed to increase the involvement of commercial actors in the space sector, this launch will usher in a “new era in India’s space sector.”
Vikram-S was originally supposed to launch on November 15, however inclement weather caused that date to be postponed.
Vikram-S and the Prarambh mission Keypoints
- The Vikram-S is transporting three customer payloads. Prarambh, which means “beginning,” is the name of the first private space company in India.
- Prarambh’s tagline is “A New Beginning.” A New Dawn. The mission patch for Prarambh was released by S. Somanath, the ISRO Chairman.
- Vikram-S, which would run on solid fuels, was developed in a record-breaking two-year time. The rocket has modern avionics and core structures are made entirely of carbon fibre.
- The mission, according to Skyroot Aerospace, will aid in evaluating and validating most of the innovations used in the Vikram family of orbital-class space launch vehicles. In addition, the mission will make sure that numerous technologies and subsystems are evaluated during both the pre-lift and post-lift phases.
- The payloads that Vikram-S is transporting were made by Space Kidz India, BazoomQ Armenia, and N-Space Tech India.
- Vikram-S is one of the very first all-composite space launch vehicles. In order to ensure the spin stability, the solid thrusters have been 3D printed. The rocket will test 80% of the technology for the forthcoming Vikram series of orbital-class space launch vehicles.
- Vikram-S can transport payloads weighing up to 83 kilogrammes to an altitude of 100 kilometres and has a mass of 545 kilogrammes, a length of six metres, a diameter of 0.375 metres, and a peak vacuum thrust of seven tonnes.
- Skyroot Aerospace has launched Prarambh successfully, making it the first private space enterprise in India to do so. This marks the start of a new age for India’s space industry, which was made commercially accessible in 2020.
Why is the rocket series called Vikram?
Skyroot Aerospace has called their series launch vehicles ‘Vikram’ in honour of Vikram Sarabhai, the founder of ISRO and the father of the Indian Space Programme.
Skyroot Aerospace intends to pursue its mission of making space travel accessible, reliable, and consistent for all. Vikram is a modular space launch vehicle designed specifically for the small satellite market, and it is planned to launch more than 20,000 tiny satellites over the next decade. According to Skyroot Aerospace, the launch vehicles have unique capabilities such as multi-orbit insertion and interplanetary missions.