New Delhi, March 4 (IANS) India will conduct a test flight of a reusable launch vehicle by the second quarter of this year to reduce the cost of satellite launches, union minister Jitendra Singh said on Wednesday.
Replying to a question in the Lok Sabha, the minister of state for department of space said the rocket's 1.5-tonne technology demonstrator would be lofted to a height of 70 km using solid booster to attain five times the speed of sound.
"The reusable launch vehicle's technology demonstrator (RLV-TD) will descend by gliding and splashing down into the sea. The test flight will demonstrate the hypersonic aerodynamics characteristics, avionics system, thermal protection system, control system and mission management," Singh told the lawmakers.
The state-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has taken steps to develop the next generation launch vehicle GSLV MkIII for placing four-tonne class communication satellites into geo-synchronous transfer orbit and bring down the cost of satellite launches.
"Developing reusable rockets is a challenge, as it involves many cutting-edge technologies. The magnitude of cost reduction depends on the development and realisation of fully reusable launch vehicle and its degree of reusability," Singh added.
The space agency had conducted the maiden test flight of GSLV MkIII on December 18, 2014 with a crew module from its spaceport at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh, about 90 km northeast of Chennai.
Five minutes after the launch, the heavy rocket ejected the 3.7-tonne crew module at a height of 126 km for its re-entry into the earth's atmosphere and descent in the Bay of Bengal near Andaman and Nicobar islands.
Based on excellent batting by Jonny Bairstow and Riley Rossouw, Punjab Kings defeated C
The rapid change in weather is being observed across the country. While the outbreak of heat is b
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reiterated Vinayak Damodar Savarkar's point of helping the British.
Preparations for the inauguration of Ram temple in Ayodhya are being done with great pomp. There
The situation in West Bengal has gone out of control since the passing of the Waqf Amendment Act.
A video of former Pakistan PM Imran Khan is going viral on social media. In this video, he is tel
UP CM Yogi Noida visit Updates: CM Yogi Adityanath to arrive in Noida after a while
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will visit Noida to review preparedness to prevent c
The family of Ziona Chana of Mizoram, head of the world's largest family (167 people), is not rea
Abdul Khaliq, Lok Sabha MP from Assam's Barpeta constituency, has made a big deal about the Mugha
Telangana: Demand to admit medical students returned from Ukraine in India, CM Rao wrote to PM Modi
The Chief Minister of Telangana has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, worrying ab
