Published on : 06/08/2022 – 14:49
It’s a new rocket about to take off in India. SSLV will launch for the first time from the launch pad of the Satish Dhawan Space Center to put two small satellites into orbit. And like any maiden flight, its performance will be carefully analyzed, especially since this new launcher completes the Indian range.
It’s not the one we talk about most often, but India is a leading space player. The rare nation to have a satellite in Mars orbit, the country has a range of three launchers capable of covering all mission profiles, from exploration of the solar system to low Earth orbit.
This weekend, a fourth model enters the scene: SSLV, an acronym for Small Satellite Launch Vehicle. In fact, it is also of reasonable size. Derived from the Indian Agni 5 missile, it is 34 meters high and can place up to 500 kilograms in low orbit.
Small size, low price, and with it India wants to acquire a device capable of launching mini or even micro-satellites, a booming sector, at low cost.
Three other missions announced
For this inaugural flight, there are two: one of Earth observation developed by ISRO, the Indian space agency, the second was carried out by students from rural areas of the country as part of the educational program Space Kidz.
If all goes well (except against orders, the launch must take place at 5:48 a.m. Paris time on the night of Saturday to Sunday), a second mission is planned for the last quarter of this year and a third in early 2023.