Chandrayaan-3 launch planned by mid 2022, working on electric propulsion satellites: ISRO

ISRO Chief Dr Sivan spoke in detail about ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 (Moon mission 3) and also the ambitious Human Spaceflight programme (Gaganyaan).

File photo

While addressing the students and faculty of UPES University, on the ‘Future of Aerospace and Avionics in India’, ISRO Chairman and Secretary DoS Dr.K.Sivan spoke about projects planned for the coming year. 

Among the projects he mentioned, he spoke in detail about ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 (Moon mission 3) and also the ambitious Human Spaceflight programme (Gaganyaan).

“Over the next decade, the Indian Space Research Organization(ISRO) is targeting several advanced capabilities including a Heavy-lift launch vehicle that can carry upto 16-ton payloads to the Geostationary Transfer Orbit (which is four times the current lift capability of GSLV Mk3) and also partially, fully reusable launch vehicles, among others,” Chairman K.Sivan said.

“We have identified, understood the deficiencies of Chandrayaan-2 and taken corrective measures for the next mission, which we are planning for launch within the first half of 2022. Gaganyaan design is in the final stages and project realization has started, all efforts are on for first unmanned mission trial by this year end” he stated. 

Elaborating on ISRO’s plans for the upcoming year and the near future he said that  payload capability to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) will be increased to 5 tons (an increase from the current 4 tons) using a semi-cryogenic engine on the existing GSLV Mk3 rocket. 

Semi-cryo engines burn rocket-grade kerosene and liquid oxygen, such engines are powerful, environmentally friendly and cost-effective. 

Dr. Sivan also mentioned the need for a more powerful booster stages (that powers the rocket at lift-off), adding that a more powerful 2000N(Newton) Liquid oxygen and kerosene engine was a work in progress.

The Indian space agency is also making a switch towards environmental-friendly rocket fuels by working on Liquid oxygen-methane and similar green propellants. 

Engines powered by methane and liquid oxygen (MethaLOX in short) are widely used in reusable rockets as methane is a clean burning fuel that leaves no residue, as opposed to kerosene. Clean burning ensures that the engines can be reused many times with less or no refurbishment.

“For satellites we are in the final stages of developing a 300mN high-thrust electric propulsion system. This will eliminate use of chemical fuels in satellites and result in lighter satellites by saving on fuel weight” Dr. Sivan said. 

He added that India’s first test facility for a semi-cryogenic engine is expected to be ready by later this year and that India had formulated a rocket grade kerosene that they call ‘ISROsene’ (to fuel the semi-cryo engines), which was formulated using the help of Indian industry. ISRO is also working with industry partners on the long-term production capability of this fuel. 

Inviting academia and industry to ideate and provide payloads for India’s second Mars Mission Mangalyaan-2, Dr. Sivan said that the second Mars mission project was in its definition stage.