Page 7 - Isro Projects

US envoy proposes development of 'QUAD satellite' with India-US partnership

US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti has proposed to develop a "QUAD satellite" involving the partnership of India and the US. During his official trip to Bengaluru on Friday, he visited the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) headquarters and met with Chairman S Somanath and discussed the ongoing cooperation between India and the US in the field of space. In a statement, the space agency said the US Ambassador proposed the development of a "QUAD satellite". During the meeting, the ISRO chairman pointed to the opportunity to develop advanced detectors and packaging technologies with US-India academic institutions. He also emphasised the importance of building and standardising docking interfaces across human space programs to enable the utilization of space platforms by other countries and joining hands to build a navigation system on the moon, either in orbit or on the surface. Taking to 'X', Garcetti on Saturday shared how he was honoured to meet the ISRO Chairman and how

India, US officials discuss opportunities to strengthen space cooperation

Senior defence officials from India and the US have met here to discuss opportunities to strengthen space cooperation and identified potential areas for collaboration with the American industry, the Pentagon said Friday. Meeting for the second annual US-India Advanced Domains Defence Dialogue (AD3), the officials discussed a wide range of bilateral cooperation. The American team was led by Vipin Narang, Acting Assistant Secretary of Defence for Space Policy, and the visiting Indian delegation was led by Vishwesh Negi, India's Joint Secretary for International Cooperation. During this year's Dialogue, Narang and Negi discussed opportunities to strengthen space cooperation and identified potential areas for collaboration with US industry, said Department of Defence Spokesperson Cmdr. Jessica Anderson. Among a group of US and Indian defence officials, the two co-chaired the first US-India principal-level tabletop discussion that explored areas to enhance cooperation in the space ...

Mangalyaan-2 unveiled: India poised to become third nation to land on Mars

India's space agency, ISRO, is gearing up for a historic milestone: a mission to land a rover and helicopter on Mars, a feat achieved only by the US and China so far

Isro to have second trial flight of unmanned Gaganyaan mission today

After the airdrop test on April 24, two more uncrewed missions are slated for 2025, leading up to the manned mission by the end of the next year, pending successful operations

India targets debris-free space missions by 2030: Isro chief Somanath

ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Tuesday announced that India aims to achieve debris-free space missions by 2030. Addressing the 42nd Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) annual meet here, he said ISRO has a very clearly laid out plan as far as space exploration and space utilisation are concerned for the coming days. "It is one of the intent or initiative of India to ensure that debris-free space missions are conducted so as to ensure the sustainability of space. I would like to make this initiative a declaration today, possibly this can be discussed and debated in the coming days," Somanath, also Secretary in the Department of Space, said. "This initiative aims to achieve debris-free space missions by all Indian space actors, governmental and non-governmental, by 2030. India also encourages all state space actors to follow this initiative for long-term sustainability of outer space," he said. "Currently, we have 54 spacecraft in orbit, plus there are non-functional .

Chandrayaan-3 mission receives prestigious US Space Exploration award

India's Chandrayaan-3 mission team was honoured with the prestigious 2024 John L. 'Jack' Swigert Jr. Award for Space Exploration

Isro successfully executes landing mission of RLV 'Pushpak' in Karnataka

This is the third successful RLV launch mission conducted by the Isro and is estimated to have cost more than Rs 100 crore

Isro to test reusable space launch vehicle 'Pushpak' in Karnataka today

Isro says RLV-TD will be scaled up to become the first stage of India's reusable two-stage orbital launch vehicle

Diagnosed with cancer on day of Aditya L1 launch, cured now: Isro chief

ISRO chairman S Somanath has revealed that he learnt about being diagnosed with cancer on the day of the launch of India's Aditya L1 mission. In an interview with Tarmak Media House, Somanath said he underwent an operation to remove the growth in his stomach, followed it up with chemotherapy and was now completely cured of the disease. "Undoubtedly, they would have been shocked. But now, I perceive cancer and its treatment as a solution. There is a message that it is not incurable," he said when asked about the reaction of his family members to the diagnosis. He said he had realized that there were some health issues during the launch of the Chandrayaan-3 mission but was not very clear about it. "I was uncertain about a complete cure at the time, I was undergoing the process," he admitted, highlighting the ongoing nature of his battle against cancer. Somanath said he would be undergoing regular checkups and scans, but he was now completely cured and has resumed duties. "No, I do

4 new astronauts head to the International Space Station for a 6-month stay

Four astronauts headed to the International Space Station on Sunday where they will oversee the arrivals of two new rocketships during their half-year stint. SpaceX's Falcon rocket blasted off from Kennedy Space Centre, carrying NASA's Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt and Jeanette Epps and Russia's Alexander Grebenkin. The astronauts should reach the orbiting lab on Tuesday. They will replace a crew from the US, Denmark, Japan and Russia, who have been there since August. When are you getting here already? space station commander Andreas Mogensen asked via X, formerly Twitter, after three days of delay due to high wind. There was almost another postponement Sunday night. A small crack in the seal of the SpaceX capsule's hatch prompted a last-minute flurry of reviews, but it was deemed safe for the whole mission. The new crew's six-month stay includes the arrival of two rocketships ordered by NASA. Boeing's new Starliner capsule with test pilots is due in late April. A month or tw

PM Modi lays foundation stone for new Isro launch complex in Tamil Nadu

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inaugurated new projects here and laid the foundation stone for new initiatives, totally worth over Rs 17,000 crore. PM Modi laid the foundation stone for a new launch complex of ISRO at Kulasekarapattinam near here, which is worth about Rs 986 crore and the facility is set to accommodate 24 launches per year. The new ISRO complex includes 35 facilities, and features a mobile launch structure (MLS) with checkout computers, marking a significant stride in enhancing space exploration capabilities.

PM to reveal names of Gaganyaan pilots, launch 3 space projects today

In preparation for the final mission, Isro is conducting a series of 'Gaganyaan' tests, including three uncrewed missions

Aditya-L1 mission's 'PAPA' detects first solar wind impact from the Sun

Advanced sensors of a payload on board India's maiden solar mission Aditya-L1 have successfully detected the impact of coronal mass ejections (CMEs), according to ISRO. The payload -- Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA) -- is an energy and mass analyser designed for in-situ measurements of solar wind electrons and ions in the low energy range, the space agency noted. It has two sensors: the Solar Wind Electron Energy Probe (SWEEP, measuring electrons in the energy range of 10 eV to 3 keV) and the Solar Wind Ion Composition Analyser (SWICAR, measuring ions in the energy range of 10 eV to 25 keV and mass range of 1-60 amu). The sensors are also equipped to measure the direction of arrival of solar wind particles. The data collected by PAPA, developed by the Space Physics Laboratory and Avionics Entity of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, revealed the occurrence of CME events, notably on December 15, 2023, and during February 10-11, 2024. "The CME on December 15, 2023, was a ..

From Mangalyaan-2 to Shukrayaan-1, here's what Isro is planning in 2024

After the success of Chandrayaan-3 and Aditya L1 in 2023, Isro has a lot planned in 2024. Here's a look at the upcoming mission

Isro to launch weather monitoring satellite INSAT-3DS today, check time

The mission is fully funded by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES)

Female Robot 'Vyommitra' to be launched before Isro's 'Gaganyaan' mission

Woman Robot Astronaut 'Vyommitra' will fly into space ahead of ISRO's ambitious 'Gaganyaan' mission, which will be India's first human-manned space flight carrying Indian astronauts into space

ISRO successfully deploys magnetometer boom on board Aditya-L1 spacecraft

ISRO has successfully deployed the magnetometer boom on board the Aditya-L1 satellite to measure the low intensity interplanetary magnetic field in space. The six metre-long magnetometer boom is deployed in the Halo orbit at the Lagrange point L-1, on January 11, the space agency said, noting that the boom had been in stowed condition for 132 days since the Aditya-L1 launch. According to ISRO, the boom carries two state-of-the-art, high-accuracy fluxgate magnetometer sensors that measure the low intensity interplanetary magnetic field in space. "The sensors are deployed at distances of 3 and 6 metres from the spacecraft body. Mounting them at these distances minimises the impact of the spacecraft generated magnetic field on measurements, and using two of them assists precise estimation of this influence. The dual sensor system facilitates cancelling out the spacecraft's magnetic influence," it said. The boom segments are constructed from carbon fibre reinforced polymer and serve a

Chandrayaan-3 lander serving as location marker near lunar south pole

An instrument on Chandrayaan-3 lander has started serving as a location marker near the lunar south pole, the ISRO said on Friday. The Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA) on the Chandrayaan-3 lander has begun serving as a fiducial point (precisely located markers for reference) on the Moon, the national space agency headquartered here said in a statement. US space agency NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) achieved a laser range measurement using the LRA by successfully detecting signals reflected by it on December 12, 2023, it said. "The ranging utilised the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) on the LRO. The observation occurred during lunar night time, with the LRO ascending to the east of Chandrayaan-3," ISRO said. NASA's LRA was accommodated on the Chandrayaan-3 Vikram lander under international collaboration. It comprises eight corner-cube retroreflectors on a hemispherical support structure. This array facilitates lasers ranging from various directions by any orbiting .

China says it will launch its next lunar explorer in the first half of 2024

China's space agency said on Wednesday that its latest lunar explorer had arrived at the launch site in preparation for a mission to the moon in the first half of this year. State broadcaster CCTV posted photos on its website of the unit under wraps as it was unloaded from a large cargo airplane earlier this week and then transported by flatbed truck to the Wenchang launch site on southern China's Hainan island. The announcement came a day after a US company abandoned a lunar landing planned for February 23 because of a fuel leak that started soon after takeoff on Monday. China and the US are both pursuing plans to land astronauts on the moon in what has become a growing rivalry in space. The US plans to do so in 2026, and China's target date is before 2030. The China National Space Administration said that pre-launch tests would be carried out on its Chang'e-6 probe. The mission's goals include bringing back samples from the far side of the moon. Another US moon lander from a Hou

Aditya L1's mission life is 5 years; 7 payloads to study Sun: All details

The Aditya L1 is located at a distance of roughly 1.5 million km from earth around the Lagrange Point 1 (L1) and will study the solar activities and its effect on space weather