Indian Space Programme Discussion

manjgu · Post by **manjgu** » 12 Mar 2016 20:09

http://gis.stackexchange.com/questions/ ... -longitude

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 12 Mar 2016 20:14

Accuracy of coordinates on earth, is far better than what satellites measure using the publicly known numbers. It is pure geometry at play. Maps by definition are geometrical projection of a spheroid to a perfect sphere or flat projection like the usual maps you see. The inaccuracy is just in the projection...but not in the native one on a sphere. Besides you can get accuracy of the ground measurement to any decimal places where you have access to...like in India along the border...that translates without too much inaccuracy introduced to any point across the border too. The challenge is not in the measurement, but identifying the targets with imagery of what you think it is.

In the end even your IRNSS accuracy is determined by how accurate is your time keeping as someone mentioned earlier. It is 3ft for every nanosecond or so.

nTripathi · Post by **nTripathi** » 12 Mar 2016 20:39

manjgu wrote:nTripathi...say i want GPS coordinated of a building in pakistan or china..how will i put a reciever there or send a drone. I ofcourse dont understand how sat imagery can tell me GPS location..and if it does why do i need to put IRNSS in the air at all?? bit confused

There are two concepts here: first is 'location' and second is 'location with respect to time'. The first one is handled by spy and remote sensing satellites: India's IRS system has already topographically mapped the globe with very high degree of accuracy. So we already know the exact latitudes and longitudes of statics targets anywhere in the world. A ballistic missile can use this as final target location, correcting its trajectory with its guidance system and ground based facilities. A cruise missile also uses the topography data, and pictures taken by its own camera to match it with sat-imagery to strike the target (this make cruise missiles low-flying and more accurate.)

'Location wrt time' is handled by navigation satellites ie tracking moving targets. If the target is not using a receiver or there is no drone out there to track it, our navigation satellites are essentially blind and we do not know where to fire our missiles! This is solved by real time spy satellite imagery. If the satellite can see the target, we already have topography and IRS images to reference the landmarks to and identify the location. To be extra sure the ranging equipment of the satellite evaluates the exact distance to the target and this data is coupled with inclination of the satellite to the target. Once coordinates of the moving target have been obtained we can fire a missile. It is now that IRNSS comes into picture. Since the missile is also a moving body, IRNSS can better track and guide the weapon from its high vantage point than ground based systems. This becomes more interesting with naval warfare: consider an enemy destroyer ship which is continuously changing course. Since there are no landmarks at sea, the spy sat takes location and velocity data from the destroyer by using only its ranging method and sends it to ground stations. They, in turn, figure out an estimated location and velocity information for next couple of seconds and send it to the missile. The missile obtains its own location and velocity data from the IRNSS and estimates its own trajectory. The computer onboard the missile corresponds the target estimated path and missile's estimated strike and performs course correction. And this process goes on until the target is hit.

Now, as to why IRNSS is req: 1) sat imagery can track a single moving target (this is done without permission of the target). Navigation satellites can track millions of users (this cannot be done without their request). 2) Ground station can navigate our missiles but we cannot build ground stations everywhere, so IRNSS helps here. 3) What if GPS goes dark. Our spy sats, IRS sats and ground stations can only guide missiles in a war: no guidance setup for troops and tanks. 4) There are huge commercial returns from navigation systems. Should we let USA reap the benefits by letting GPS provide navigation in India?

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 13 Mar 2016 11:37

HEX was delayed due to a leak from the toroidal fuel tank of the SITVC system attached to the solid rocket booster as per some reports delaying the launch. Seems that was solved

ISRO's RLV-TD Mission Launch Likely in May

By Tiki Rajwi Published: 11th March 2016 06:54 AM Last Updated: 11th March 2016 06:54 AM

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The scaled-down model of the reusable launch vehicle (RLV) India is planning to build is expected to be shifted from the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) here at Thumba to the Sriharikota spaceport by the end of March.

If things go as planned, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will have the keenly awaited Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD) mission - a first step towards building a desi space shuttle - in May. VSSC, which is ISRO’s nodal agency for launch vehicles, is engaged in the final integration of the ‘space plane’ portion of the RLV-TD. The ‘space plane’ will sit atop a booster rocket used on the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), which will carry it to a height of 70 km. The prototype, one-sixth the size of the proposed RLV and weighing 1.5 tonnes, will glide back to earth and land in the Bay of Bengal.

This will be the first of a series of technology demonstrations ISRO will conduct before actually building a full-sized RLV. ‘’We hope to have the test some time in May. It will come after the next PSLV mission which will carry the seventh and final satellite in the IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System) series,’’ VSSC director Dr K Sivan told this paper. On Thursday, ISRO successfully placed the sixth IRNSS satellite in orbit. Although the next IRNSS mission was originally planned for March 31, it will be delayed up to April.

The RLV-TD mission was originally planned for the middle of 2015, but the development of the ‘space plane’ prototype had been delayed, forcing ISRO to put off the mission.

RLV-TD Mission

RLV-TD to be shifted to Sriharikota this month
First step towards building India’s space shuttle
Series of technology demonstrations planned
VSSC engaged in final integration of the ‘space plane’ portion of RLV-TD

member_23694 · Post by **member_23694** » 13 Mar 2016 13:59

http://www.oneindia.com/india/isro-plan ... 39694.html

"We have already reached seven launches in a year. We intend to increase it to almost 12 launches a year... immediately (subsequently) following to reach up to 18 launches a year," he said, delivering a lecture at the Aeronautical Society of India (AeSI), Hyderabad branch, last evening, but did not give time-frame to achieve the objective. "We need to build capacity and this capacity-building is going to happen with attempts by bringing in industry to use the launch vehicles (rockets of ISRO). We are looking at the industry performing total launch at Sriharikota (ISRO's spaceport) using mechanisms. So, we are working on these mechanisms," he said. "Today we are working on mechanisms for ensuring that the industry would be able to build and launch satellites using the launch vehicles in our Sriharikota launch pad. "Industry participation, for example raw materials, fabrication, is happening and vehicle integration is planned for near future. We are in discussion with industries. We are trying to make industries to take bigger stakes in the space programmes," Kiran Kumar said. ISRO is working on a mechanism with the industry on sharing responsibility, both in terms of investment and in areas of co-development and co-innovation.

G Satheesh Reddy, Scientific Adviser to Defence Minister, said AeSI has approached its counterparts in advanced nations, inviting companies there to set up shop in India in areas of aerospace sector where the country is not strong, in partnership with 'desi' firms, as part of the 'Make in India' push.
Society has written letter to them (counterparts in other countries) listing areas in the sector where India needs collaboration. He said they are expecting response in a couple of months and hope to initiate discussion with serious players from abroad in the second-half of this year, and "marry" them with interested domestic firms.

sanjaykumar · Post by **sanjaykumar** » 13 Mar 2016 23:01

http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/ ... 321258.ece

Eagerly awaiting the launch saar. As per usual.

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 14 Mar 2016 03:24

@ manjgu

Using satellite imagery ( e.g. Google Earth ), one can create a actual 3D imagery of ' this is the terrain path you have to take ' command and feed it to missile prior to release. Theoretically ( ignore the exaggeration

) no Lat/Long info is reqd if the missile has to only see what is seen by itself.

After launch, the missile can 'watch' the terrain and adjust itself to hit the exact target by adjusting its path to 'what is actually seen' with 'what was commanded'.

manjgu · Post by **manjgu** » 14 Mar 2016 03:55

@SSSalvi...thanks. I do understand the terrain mapping/matching bit. Was just confirming if its possible to get lat/long of a point thru satellite imagery ( which i understand as explained by Bade, ntripathi & others is possible). A missile then could have multiple ways to reach a point/destination..

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 14 Mar 2016 06:33

TERCOM ( Inertial navigation and global positioning, Star sensors etc all are required due to limitations of each. For eg Inertial Navigation has Integration drift. Terrain contour may mismatch due to changes etc and GPS may be spoofed etc.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 14 Mar 2016 06:50

IRNSS 1F UPDATE:Orbit Determination results from the third LAM firing
Orbit Determination results from the third LAM firing are:
apogee X perigee height was changed to 35749km, 33355km, Inclination is 5.271deg. Orbital period now is 22hr 53m

SSSalvi · Post by **SSSalvi** » 14 Mar 2016 07:27

manjgu wrote: I do understand the terrain mapping/matching bit. Was just confirming if its possible to get lat/long of a point thru satellite imagery ( which i understand as explained by Bade, ntripathi & others is possible). A missile then could have multiple ways to reach a point/destination..

Using GPS and Radar Sats ( with a known location marker nearby ) one can fix the location/altitude accuracy within cms ( if not sub-cm ).

What more accuracy is required for a precision kill?

disha · Post by **disha** » 16 Mar 2016 01:03

At the launch of the first IRNSS sat., I had opened up a thread specific to IRNSS discussions. One of my idea was to create a simple app that uses IRNSS signals for providing GPS info and put it on open source so that social sectors can use it (for example somebody can build it further to map all the anganwaadis in my district).

Of course the above is a mercury shot, but then hope is eternal.

A gentle request., can we move the GPS discussion on IRNSS thread? The mine of information in the above posts need to be captured and parsed/debated/understood and hence pulling it in separate thread is a good option.

---------

Prassanasimha'ji - Can you give us more details on the toroidal tank? That is what going to be used for RLV? I think that is a major breakthrough!

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 17 Mar 2016 13:25

IRNSS full fleet could be a month late - Madhumitha D.S. - The Hindu

The country’s ambitious GPS-like regional fleet of navigation satellites will not get completed before end-April, as the last and seventh spacecraft in the series has got delayed.

The spacecraft, IRNSS-1G, was planned for March 31. It is now planned to be launched towards the end of April, a delay that is not unusual in the Space arena.

Indian Space Research Organisation sources said the satellite was getting readied at the ISRO Satellite Centre in Bengaluru. The sixth one, 1F, was flown as recently as on March 10 from the Sriharikota launch site.

The seventh one would improve the coverage more than the final accuracy of location information, which was almost achieved, they said.

Expected uses

Much is anticipated of the uses of the Rs. 1400-crore IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System), which is aimed at improving positional and navigational accuracy on land, sea and in air within the country; and for everyday civil uses as well as defence and security affairs.

The first in the series, IRNSS-1A, was put in orbit in July 2013; each of the spacecraft is built to last for at least ten years.

Next launch

P. Kunhikrishnan, Director of the launch unit, Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota, confirmed that the centre was working towards the next launch, now planned for April-end.

“We have started the launch campaign for PSLV-C33 [the vehicle for IRNSS-1G] and all activities for launching it are on course. It will be launched from the [older] first launch pad [LP1],” he said.

ISRO plans to double its launch rate in a year by doing a flight a month.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 18 Mar 2016 18:28

Mar 15, 2016
IRNSS 1F UPDATE: Orbit Determination results from fourth LAM firing
Orbit Determination results from fourth LAM firing are:
Apogee X perigee height was changed to 35749 km, 35605 km
Inclination is 5.097deg
Orbital period now is 23hr 50min 32sec

- See more at: http://isro.gov.in/update/15-mar-2016/i ... 9Vokz.dpuf

jayasimha · Post by **jayasimha** » 23 Mar 2016 20:11

Press Information Bureau
Government of India
Cabinet
23-March-2016 16:24 IST
Procurement of launch services and realization of ground segment for GSAT-11 spacecraft

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval for the procurement of launch services and realization of ground segment for GSAT-11 spacecraft at a cost of Rs. 1117 crore.

GSAT-11 will be ready for launch by the end of 2016. Considering the 5600 Kg lift-off mass, the satellite will be launched using procured launch vehicle outside the country. The ground segment is being realized to address the rural communication requirements. This will enable early deployment of GSAT-11 so as to augment Ku-band capacity which can be utilized for various services like VSATS, broadband etc. The ground segment of GSAT-11 will enable the utilisation of a small portion of the bandwidth for societal services apart from providing in orbit testing support. It will also provide a high throughput capacity of about 10 Gbps to render broadband connectivity especially in rural areas.

Background:

GSAT-11, a communication satellite with 32 high-power spot beams for providing high bandwidth VSAT communication is currently under development at DOS/ISRO facilities.

***

VBA/SH

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 24 Mar 2016 13:09

Google Lunar X Prize: Team Indus, India

member_23694 · Post by **member_23694** » 25 Mar 2016 17:54

http://spacenews.com/spaceflight-waits- ... geo-orbit/

Seems PSLV flight is definitely not cheap

PratikDas · Post by **PratikDas** » 25 Mar 2016 23:25

dhiraj wrote:http://spacenews.com/spaceflight-waits- ... geo-orbit/

Seems PSLV flight is definitely not cheap

Spaceflight Industries Raises $20 Million
by Peter B. de Selding — March 11, 2015

What about India’s PSLV vehicle, which apparently is now open for U.S. commercial satellites?

We are vehicle agnostic. If there is a vehicle going, we’re talking to them — except for the Chinese because of political challenges. But for any country we can export spacecraft to, we are talking to them. As for PSLV, I can’t be specific but we are working the manifest to get payloads on there.

Of course, the PSLV won't be able to carry as much as some other launchers but that's why we have the GSLV.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 29 Mar 2016 11:29

ISRO to launch 22 satellites on one rocket - T.Nandakumar, The Hindu

When the PSLV C34 rocket blasts off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Srikarikota in May this year, it will signal another giant leap for India’s space mission. The trusted launch vehicle will inject 22 satellites into the orbit, a first in the history of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Apart from the Indian remote sensing satellite, Cartosat 2C, which constitutes the primary payload, the rocket will carry on board four micro-satellites weighing 85 to 130 kg each and 17 nano-satellites weighing 4 to 30 kg. As many as 18 satellites are being launched for foreign agencies, including those from the U.S., Canada, Germany, and Indonesia.

Two of the nano-satellites have been developed by the Pune Engineering College and Sathyabhama University {Chennai}.

“The PSLV rocket, in its XL version, will be used for the mission,” VSSC Director K. Sivan said here on Monday. “The injection of so many satellites into orbit increases the complexity of the mission many fold,” he told reporters.

In April 2008, ISRO launched 10 satellites into the orbit using the PSLV C9 rocket

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 29 Mar 2016 13:09

Improving South Asian space cooperation - Vidya Sagar Reddy, The Space Review

In a recent meeting of foreign ministers of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Pakistan denied its approval for building and launching a communications satellite for the SAARC region, intended as a gift from India.

This project was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to India’s spaceport in 2014. Emphasizing the role of space technology in development, he encouraged the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to build a common satellite platform that would serve communications requirements of SAARC member nations.

ISRO designed a satellite hosting twelve transponders, with one transponder allotted to each of the seven SAARC countries. It is expected to optimize direct-to-home broadcasting, tele-medicine, tele-education, disaster management, and a host of communications services in the region. The costs associated with building and launching of the satellite will be borne by India, while respective countries contribute for their ground stations.

The project gained approval “in principle” from Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Pakistan was also willing to debate the idea. In order to allay concerns and expedite formal approval processes from member countries, India hosted a users meeting in June last year. The International Telecommunication Union requires these approvals for granting the orbital slot and frequency registration.

Five representatives from each of the member countries, including Pakistan, attended the users meeting, raising genuine questions. Subsequently, only Sri Lanka granted its formal approval after requested changes were made in the agreement to ensure it would not be precluded from launching own communications satellite in the future. Bangladesh discussed outcomes of this project affecting the launch of its Bangabandhu-1 communications satellite in 2017. Afghanistan asked about the need for more transponders as it recently leased a satellite from Eutelsat. Despite satisfying answers, India is yet to receive formal approvals.

Pakistan’s objections were two fold. It feared India may eavesdrop on its strategic communications. In this scenario, Pakistan could have purposed its transponder purely for civilian communications while routing its strategic communications through other satellites that it perceives trustworthy. It has the sole authority over the ground station that uplinks with the satellite for SAARC.

Pakistan also wanted this project executed through SAARC secretariat and involve its expertise on the subject. India denied this idea on the grounds that this satellite is a “gift” from India to SAARC countries and not a joint project. Besides, India fears involving the SAARC secretariat would delay the launch date beyond 2016. It was therefore careful in naming it the “Satellite for SAARC” and not “SAARC Satellite.”

Pakistan’s disapproval is seen as a setback for India’s foreign policy that now prioritizes “Neighbourhood First” where a peaceful and prospering neighborhood is indispensable for India’s economic growth, domestic development, and fulfilling its international responsibilities. While this is true, India’s approach is to work with its neighborhood for common development rather than dominate. The former approach requires a regional cooperation mechanism like SAARC with equal status for member countries, while the latter works by tilting the balance in bilateral relations favoring its own.

India sees its neighborhood being plagued by some of the same deficiencies in basic infrastructure that once beset itself. Bangladesh and Afghanistan are striving to acquire internal stability and expedite development. Pakistan and Nepal are highly prone to natural disasters. Maldives is facing acute dangers from climate change and a rising sea level. Communication systems are essential to effectively respond to these situations.

Space technology played a critical role for creating the India that exists today. Vikram Sarabhai, father of India’s space program, set the direction of space technology development towards fighting the ills of the society and achieving self-reliance. One television broadcast experiment in the 1970s that instantly connected hundreds of rural villages compelled India to acquire a dedicated fleet of communications satellites for realizing its developmental goals.

India now operates one of the largest domestic communication satellite systems in the Asia-Pacific region, providing telecommunications, television broadcasting, weather forecasting, disaster warning, and search and rescue applications. It also operates a communications satellite dedicated for education by connecting schools and colleges across India.

This satellite for SAARC is also intended to be used for such educational purposes and create employment, which would ensure stability, and respond effectively during natural disasters. India has already decided to launch this satellite by the end of this year, and it would be prudent for other member countries to partake in such a project by granting their approvals.

When a regional connectivity project is at stake that directly impacts more than a billion people, it is absolutely essential to shed deliberately crafted perceptions that might have been politically useful in other situations, especially during the Cold War, when the regional scenario is different. It is now incumbent upon the political centers of these countries to promote economic development and, as such, should not undermine the value of this time-critical project.

India should also start prioritizing space cooperation with fellow SAARC members in good faith of its responsibility to distribute public goods. It does appropriate space resources for disaster management, including activating the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters on behalf of fellow SAARC countries.

In addition, the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System, whose footprint includes the South Asian region, and the GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation project, would be of interest to SAARC members. India continues to explore the benefits of fusing space technology with various departmental works like railways, shipping, natural resources, financial management, archaeology, and forestry, among others. This experience can be shared with fellow SAARC members, enabling them undertake development projects in an efficient and transparent manner.

The respective civilian space agencies should be encouraged to communicate, formulate cooperation agreements, and execute those projects beneficial to the region. Given the burgeoning interest in utilizing space assets to support expanding markets and infrastructure projects, a proposal for a consortium of regional space agencies should be tabled. Specific educational institutions representing the SAARC members should be part of this initiative.

Gaining commitment from member countries is indeed difficult, given the poor political and diplomatic coordination among South Asian countries via the SAARC framework. This satellite project should be considered a mission to reverse these prejudices. India should double its diplomatic efforts for bringing all the remaining SAARC members on board before the satellite is launched. A unified and strengthened SAARC is crucial for pending and future region-wide connectivity and infrastructure projects, which are key to enhanced global trade and development.

Vidya Sagar Reddy is a researcher at the Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi.

Varoon Shekhar · Post by **Varoon Shekhar** » 29 Mar 2016 16:24

SSridhar wrote:ISRO to launch 22 satellites on one rocket - T.Nandakumar, The Hindu

Amazing!! Can hardly wait, less than 2 full months away.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 29 Mar 2016 16:35

Launch a satellite and give transponders to SAARC members if interested or else let us use it ourself. We anyway need those transponders.

Varoon Shekhar · Post by **Varoon Shekhar** » 29 Mar 2016 17:08

What's interesting is that the figure of 22 satellites was never mentioned publicly, until now. ISRO can sometimes annoy, with their inaccuracies and delays, but they can also pleasantly surprise, so credit where it's due.

srin · Post by **srin** » 03 Apr 2016 16:03

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/new ... 668544.cms

Recently India's main lab that specialises in making rockets for the country mastered the art of making the 'world's lightest artificial material' called 'silica aerogel'. This aerogel is actually a solid but within its complex matrix it encapsulates 99 per cent air. This gives it several unique properties-- it is incredibly light, it is a great thermal insulator.

Naga Priya, scientist in Advanced Materials & Ceramics Division at VSSC who is part of the team that made this material, explains that the process to make the silica aerogel is highly guarded so standardising the procedure to make the aerogel took her team a lot of effort.

The team hopes to use some of the 'silica aerogel' for insulating the tanks that hold the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen in the cryogenic engines. Since it is lightweight, it could also be used in designing the space suits that future Indian astronauts may be wearing. The small buggy that will be part of the Chandrayaan-2 and will run around the lunar surface in 2018 could also see the use of the 'silica aerogel' as an insulator.

Naga Priya explains her lab is already in discussion with the Indian Ordnance Factory that manufactures clothes for the soldiers to see how this new material can be sandwiched between layers of cloth for making light weight parkas, socks and gloves for the soldiers who are posted at Siachen.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 04 Apr 2016 09:29

Defense News: Fearing competition from ISRO, US space companies lobby to maintain ban on use of Indian rockets

vishvak · Post by **vishvak** » 04 Apr 2016 23:07

Another reason why Govt. should have a separate dept under MEA for foreign alphabet soup ~~canals~~ contracts, and in case a ship hits any alphabet or more of the soup canal. This dept can have satellites for join projects, for example w.r.t. joint India-Japan-US patrols and so on. Otherwise individual departments will drag some issues in after handing over satellites directly from ISRO for some joint projects. I hope ISRO can launch new satellites quickly for India and other countries, and set up new infra in case such things happen.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 05 Apr 2016 15:04

Not directly related to ISRO, but to growing interest in aerospace in India.

Four Indian teams to compete in NASA rover challenge - The Hindu

Four groups of Indian students are part of nearly 80 teams that will participate in the U.S. space agency’s ‘Human Exploration Rover Challenge’ to help NASA realise its goals for future exploration to Mars and beyond.

The teams from Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management and Engineering in Maharashtra, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Roorkee in Uttarakhand, Sathyabama University in Tamil Nadu, and Skyline Institute of Engineering and Technology in Uttar Pradesh will be taking part in the challenge, NASA said.

Teams from the U.S., India, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Colombia, Russia and Puerto Rico will compete in the annual challenge, to be held at the U.S. Space and Rocket Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, on April 8 and 9.

The rover challenge requires student teams to design, construct, test and race human-powered rovers through an obstacle course that simulates the terrain potentially found on distant planets, asteroids or moons.

Teams race to finish an obstacle course in the fastest time, vying for prizes in various divisions.

Fabricating wheels

This year’s event incorporates two new and important changes. Teams are required to design and fabricate their own wheels.

Any component contacting the course surface for traction and mobility, including, but not limited to wheels, tracks, treads or belts, cannot be purchased or considered an off-the-shelf product. The second new feature is an optional ‘Sample Return’ challenge.

Teams competing in this separate competition will collect four samples — liquid, small pebbles, large rocks and soil samples — using a mechanical arm or grabber they design and build.

The event will conclude with a ceremony at the Davidson Centre for Space Exploration in Huntsville where the awards will be presented for best design, rookie team, pit crew award and other accomplishments. — IANS

Varoon Shekhar · Post by **Varoon Shekhar** » 05 Apr 2016 15:54

srin wrote:[url]

Recently India's main lab that specialises in making rockets for the country mastered the art of making the 'world's lightest artificial material' called 'silica aerogel'. This aerogel is actually a solid but within its complex matrix it encapsulates 99 per cent air. This gives it several unique properties-- it is incredibly light, it is a great thermal insulator.

Excellent achievement! However, it would be nice to see this impressive innovation actually used in the space programme. I wonder what timeline they are giving to apply it in engines or space suits or whatever. I am waiting for this news: "The GSLV/PSLV that took off today used an ISRO developed ultra light material called silica aerogel, that has reduced the weight of the main engine, thus allowing a higher payload to be launched"

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 05 Apr 2016 16:19

^^ Aerogels were used as I recall in some payload by ISRO. It is a known substance to people in the world of detector physics even in India.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 05 Apr 2016 22:42

^Aerogels have wide applications in both space and military including in reentry vehicles etc.I don't think they will be announcing everything and everything.

member_29172 · Post by **member_29172** » 06 Apr 2016 05:38

SSridhar wrote:Improving South Asian space cooperation - Vidya Sagar Reddy, The Space Review

Is there a vote system or something? If majority of the countries are ready, just drop the pukis and move along with the plan. We don't need terrorists in our group anyway.

member_29172 · Post by **member_29172** » 07 Apr 2016 07:19

americans showing their true colours again, don't sabotage the space program by mingling with these western crooks

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 10 Apr 2016 11:24

The Payloads Of India’s Upcoming Moon Mission

http://aviationweek.com/space/payloads- ... on-mission

nash · Post by **nash** » 13 Apr 2016 18:48

Cartosat-2C to boost military surveillance capabilities -

See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/cities ... TDOnE.dpuf

The 690-kilogram dual-use satellite is equipped with a Panchromatic Camera and a high-resolution multi-spectral instrument. This camera will have a resolution of 0.65 metres which is an improvement over the 0.8 metre camera sent on earlier missions. The new camera onboard the mission, can not only click high resolution pictures of disputed border and coastal areas, but can also record videos of sensitive targets from space, compress it, and relay it back to Earth.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 13 Apr 2016 21:47

The cartosat launch is probably the reason for the last IRNSS delay. Probably cartosat is needed more emergently for anticipated problems along with the level of accuracy that IRNSS permits.

Austin · Post by **Austin** » 14 Apr 2016 09:26

Some facts and myths from first human space flight

http://www.russianspaceweb.com/vostok1.html

Facts and misconceptions

As the world celebrating 50th anniversary of Gagarin's achievement, the popular media run numerous and... still erroneous accounts of this historic mission. Below is the guide to the most popular myths and misconceptions in press and TV:

There were no attempts to launch a human into space before Gagarin either in the USSR or anywhere in the world.
Problems with the hatch closure did not delay Gagarin's launch or extended his stay in the capsule.
Gagarin's ride to orbit was not trouble free - unknown to the pilot, the spacecraft entered a dangerously high orbit.
Gagarin's mission lasted 106 minutes, not 108 minutes, the duration that was reported for 50 years and even made book titles.
Popular film footage traditionally associated with Gagarin's liftoff, was actually recorded during the ill-fated launch of an unmanned Vostok prototype on July 28, 1960. (Only a few seconds after the dramatic images of the rocket's shadow moving across the giant flame duct of the launch complex had been captured, the vehicle exploded killing two dogs onboard.
Film footage of Korolev wishing Gagarin a successful flight was recorded after the fact in Korolev's office in Podlipki (near Moscow), not in the underground bunker in Tyuratam from which Korolev was monitoring the launch.
Despite numerous Russian and Western accounts, Gagarin's problems during the return to Earth were caused by the braking engine, not by an umbilical cable between the descent and service module.
Gagarin did not land on target and did not overfly it, but instead landed far short of the expected touchdown area.

tsarkar · Post by **tsarkar** » 14 Apr 2016 20:52

http://aviationweek.com/national-space- ... f05d1ad33e

NEW DELHI — India will launch its new Earth observation satellite, Cartosat-2C, in May, in an effort to boost the country’s military reconnaissance and surveillance capability.

The observatory, along with 21 other satellites, will be lifted by India’s indigenous Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-CA) from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota in south India. It will be placed in a Sun-synchronous polar orbit with a perigee of 200 km (124 mi.) and an apogee of 1,200 km above the Earth’s surface, according to an official at the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).

The satellite, which was built at ISRO’s Space Application Center (SAC) in the western city of Ahmedabad, was moved to ISRO’S Satellite Center (ISAC) at Bengaluru in south India two weeks ago after undergoing several rounds of tests and evaluation. “All tests have turned out to be successful,” the ISRO official says.

India’s first dedicated military satellite, CartoSat-2A, was launched in 2007. Cartosat-2C will be a dual-use satellite, performing disaster monitoring as well as surveilling enemy missile sites.

The 690-kg (1,520 lb.) satellite is equipped with a panchromatic camera and a high-resolution multi-spectral instrument. With a resolution of 0.65 meters, an upgrade over the 0.8 meter camera of Cartosat-2A, Cartosat-2C can spot even smaller objects from space. The camera can not only capture high-resolution images of disputed border and coastal areas, but also record videos of crucial targets from space and transmit compressed versions to the ground.

Lilo · Post by **Lilo** » 14 Apr 2016 23:00

X-post

MENCA brings divine wealth from Mars: First science results from the Mars Orbiter Mission
Syed Maqbool Ahmed 2016/03/02 14:00 UTC

MENCA(Mars Exospheric Neutral Composition Analyser) is a quadrupole mass spectrometer onboard India's Mars Orbiter Mission, MOM. In Hindu mythology, Menaka was a nymph sent down to Earth from Indralok, the palace of the gods' god, Indra. Hence the first published results of MENCA from Mars is like a divine wealth, I must say. The results were published a few days ago in Geophysical Research Letters. Barring a few conference abstracts and a recent summary of MOM sub-systems in an Indian journal (PDF), this is the very first science result that the Indian MOM has churned out on the international forum. I am hoping for many more to come.

MENCA is based on the design of the CHACE instrument that was sent to the moon on ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission. It was built at Space Physics Laboratory (almost by the same group as for CHACE) of ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Center, in southern part of India. Basically, it is a neutral gas mass spectrometer covering 1-300 amu range with a capability of separating a single mass unit. The Mars Orbiter Mission was inserted into Martian orbit on September 24, 2014, with orbit parameters of 400 by 71,000 kilometers.

After the completion of one year of primary mission (September 2015), MOM was made to dip down to 260 kilometers from its normal periapsis altitude of 400 kilometers. While dipping down, MENCA had better chances of collecting data on neutral species data. The newly published paper reports that MENCA has successfully measured the altitudinal profiles of CO2, (N2+CO) and O. It gives me an immense satisfaction and PRIDE that MENCA has come up with flying colors.

What about the other instruments? Among the five payloads onboard MOM, both MCC and TIRS are imaging instruments. Big science is expected from the Methane Sensor for Mars, MSM, but as per a report appearing in January in The Financial Express, speaking at the Indian Science congress, Mr. S.K. Shivakumar (ex-director ISAC-ISRO) made a statement that MOM is yet to find methane on Mars. The Lyman Alpha Photometer (LAP) carries a great scientific value for its potential in estimating Martian atmospheric loss. But, the day belongs to MENCA.

The hard lessons learned in developing CHACE during Chandrayaan-I were all worth it. I feel I am on seventh cloud. I could say this not only for my correct prediction that MENCA was the most scientifically promising instrument on MOM, but also due to my personal experience of our attempts to publish the peak #18 (Water) data recorded by CHACE at the Moon in December 2008 with Chandrayaan-I. It was (then) rejected for publication on the grounds that it was likely "contamination". Later, in November 2009, the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) instrument's remote sensing data of water from Chandrayaan-I was published by Science.{Notice the similarity to how the kerala school of calculus was pooh poohed} .So I would like to end by saying that MENCA's triumph on Mars means Lunar CHACE was correct.

So CHACE infact did detect water on moon before the M3 of Massa - remember how the isro representative was standing in the front row when sitting NASA scientists on podium were announcing that their M3 discovered water on moon and were throwing a bone or two at Isro for making it possible by launching it.

AbhiJ · Post by **AbhiJ** » 15 Apr 2016 06:54

If India discovers methane in Martian atmosphere, somehow masa will claim it.

Bade · Post by **Bade** » 15 Apr 2016 07:20

Claims have already been made a long time ago, it just has not been verified as far as I know or have read on the topic.