Gaganyaan: First test vehicle abort mission on October 21

Bengaluru: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Monday said the first unmanned flight test for its human spaceflight mission Gaganyaan will be held on October 21, between 7 am and 9 am.

The Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) has been scheduled from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on a single-stage liquid rocket. An unpressurised version of the crew module (CM) will be used for the flight. The module is extensively instrumented to capture the flight data for evaluation of the performance of various systems, ISRO said.

Simulated abort condition

The abort mission payloads consist of the CM and Crew Escape Systems (CES). The space agency said this flight will simulate the abort condition during the ascent trajectory. CES with CM will be separated from the test vehicle at an altitude of about 17 km. Subsequently, the abort sequence will be executed autonomously, commencing with the separation of CES and deployment of the series of parachutes, culminating in the safe touchdown of the CM in the sea, about 10 km from the coast of Sriharikota.

ISRO said TV-D1 is a significant milestone for the Gaganyaan programme as a near-complete system is integrated for a flight test. Its success will set the stage for the remaining qualification tests and unmanned flights in the run-up to the Gaganyaan mission with Indian astronauts.

During the Gaganyaan mission, the astronauts will be carried on a CM in a pressurised, earth-like condition. With Gaganyaan, ISRO plans to launch a three-member crew to an orbit of 400 km, for a three-day mission.

The unpressurised version of the CM used in TV-D1 will have an overall size and weight matching the actual Gaganyaan CM. It comes with all deceleration and recovery systems and the complete set of parachutes and recovery aids. On touchdown, the CM will be recovered in the Bay of Bengal, using a dedicated vessel and an Indian Navy diving team.