Gaganyaan mission: ISRO conducts qualification tests for Drogue Parachutes

Chennai: In yet another preparatory test for Gaganyaan, the country’s first human spaceflight programmee, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully completed a series of qualification tests for Drogue Parachutes for the development of deceleration system of Gaganyaan Crew Module.

The tests were conducted at the Rail Track Rocket Sled (RTRS) facility of the Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL), Chandigarh on December 18 and 19.

The deceleration system of Gaganyaan Crew Module comprises of a total of 10 parachutes of four types. The descent sequence begins with two apex cover separation parachutes that remove the protective cover of the parachute compartment, followed by two drogue parachutes that stabilize and decelerate the module.

Upon release of the drogues, three pilot parachutes are deployed to extract three main parachutes, which further slowdown the Crew Module to ensure a safe touchdown, the ISRO said.

A crucial component of this system is the deployment of drogue parachutes, which play a pivotal role in stabilizing the Crew Module and also reducing its velocity to a safe level during re-entry.

The objective of this specific test series was to rigorously evaluate the performance and reliability of the drogue parachutes under extreme conditions. Both the RTRS tests on drogue parachutes were successfully conducted on December 18 19 and achieved all the test objectives and confirming their robustness even under the situation of significant variation in flight conditions.

The successful completion of these tests marks another significant step toward qualifying the parachute system for human spaceflight.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman Dr V Narayanan had last week said that the mission will be launched in 2027 as scheduled with the space agency successfully conducting over 8,000 experiments, including simulations for air quality, temperature control, waste management, and emergency responses.

“The first unmanned mission will be launched late 2025, followed by two more in 2026 to validate the entire stack which includes the rocket, crew module, and re-entry systems. We are working tirelessly on the Gaganyaan mission which will send Indian astronauts to space using our own rocket,” Narayanan had said.