Space
Skyroot’s First Orbital Rocket
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Skyroot’s Infinity Campus in Hyderabad via video conference and unveiled the spacetech startup’s first orbital rocket, Vikram-I.
- Vikram-I is scheduled to debut in early 2026, aiming at the small-satellite market amid a projected $77 billion Indian space economy by 2030.
- This highlights India’s progress in space technology and the government’s support for youth research opportunities, exemplified by creating the National Research Foundation.
- Prime Minister mentioned that more than 300 space startups are contributing to India’s space future.
Skyroot Aerospace’s New Infinity Campus
- The new facility spans 2,00,000 square feet and is designed for designing, developing, integrating, and testing multiple launch vehicles.
- It can produce one orbital rocket per month.
- Skyroot Aerospace, established by IIT alumni Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, is a pivotal player in India’s private space sector.
Vikram-I Rocket
- Named after Vikram Sarabhai, the Vikram-I is India’s private orbital-class launch vehicle.
- It stands 20 meters tall, 1.7 meters in diameter, and produces 1,200 kN of thrust.
- Emphasizes simplicity, reliability, and rapid launch capabilities within 24 hours from any location.
NISAR Satellite Enters Science Phase
- NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite has entered its final science phase, ISRO announced.
About NISAR
- The satellite, launched in July, has officially entered the final science phase, announced by ISRO.
- First joint Earth observation mission between ISRO and NASA.
- Provides all-weather, day-and-night data for a wide range of applications.
- Five-year mission: phases include launch, deployment, commissioning, and science.
- Science phase involves maintaining science orbit, manoeuvres to avoid observation conflicts, and extensive calibration and validation.
- Key Component: A 12-metre diameter antenna reflector was deployed post-launch, which is crucial for both ISRO’s S-Band and NASA’s L-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) Payload.
Latest inventions in science and technology
Delay in Samudrayaan Mission
- Samudrayaan is India’s first manned submersible dive, aiming to send a crew of three people in the MATSYA 6000 sphere to a depth of 6,000 meters into the ocean.
- The mission is considered pivotal to India’s future exploration plans, particularly for mining precious metals from the high seas.
- A crucial final set of trials is delayed until mid-next year (originally scheduled for December 2024) due to a delay in the procurement of syntactic foam cladding.
- This specialized foam is essential as it provides the submersible with buoyancy, enabling it to float and withstand the immense pressure of the deep sea.
- It is being developed in France and tested in Norway.
- Delivery is hoped for by the end of the year (2025).
- Development Agency: The project is led by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
