Sign In
Learn bits
Science & Tech.
Mahesh

11/11/22 14:05 PM IST

Vikram S

In News 
  • Vikram-S, India’s first privately developed launch vehicle, is set to take off from the Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) launchpad in Sriharikota as part of Mission Prarambh (the beginning).
Mission Prarambh 
  • It is a mission under which Vikram-S – India’s first privately developed launch vehicle by Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace will carry 3 customer satellites (2 Indian and 1 foreign) in a sub-orbital flight.
  • Suborbital flights travel at a slower rate than orbital velocity – velocity at which a body revolves around the other body. They are fast enough to reach outer space but not fast enough to remain in orbit around the Earth.
  • A tribute to Vikram Sarabhai – founder of the Indian space programme, the launch vehicles have been crafted specially for the small satellite (between 5-1000 kg) market.
Vikram S 
  • Named after Vikram Sarabhai, the Father of the Indian Space Programme, Vikram S is a small-lift launch vehicle that will “signal the beginning of a new era for the space industry.
  • The Vikram-S rocket is a single-stage sub-orbital launch vehicle which would carry three customer payloads and help test and validate the majority of the technologies in the Vikram series of space launch vehicles.
  • The ‘Vikram’ series has three rockets that are being developed to launch small satellites.
  • These will help to support communication services such as broadband internet, GPS, IoT from space and earth imaging.
  • The Vikram series (I, II, III) comprises solid-state rockets that are built on upgradeable architecture with carbon composite and 3D-printed motors and can be assembled and launched in less than 72 hours.
  • They can carry satellites weighing up to 815kgs to the low Earth orbit and the sun-synchronous polar orbits (SSPOs). 
  • Vikram I will be the first of the series launch that includes three solid fuel stages, plus a liquid-fueled kick stage.
  • It will be able to carry lighter satellites, weighing up to 480 kg to low-inclination orbits. Vikram I will have two Indian and one foreign payload.
Skyroot Aerospace 
  • Based in Hyderabad, Skyroot was the first startup to sign a memorandum of understanding with ISRO for launching its rockets.
  • It aims to disrupt entry barriers to cost-efficient satellite launch services and space-flight by advancing its mission to make spaceflights affordable, reliable and regular for all.
Source- Indian Express 

More Related Current Affairs View All

05 May

Key objectives of caste count

'The Union Cabinet has decided that the next Census will include questions on caste to its enumeration of India’s population, for the first time in almost a century. ' T

Read More

05 May

2 new genome-edited rice varieties

'Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan recently released two genome-edited varieties of rice, the first achievement of its kind in the country.' These two varieties, which

Read More

05 Mar

First-ever comprehensive survey of India’s river dolphins

'Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the results of the first-ever comprehensive population estimation of riverine dolphins – Gangetic and Indus dolphins – done in In

Read More

India’s First Ai-Driven Magazine Generator

Generate Your Custom Current Affairs Magazine using our AI in just 3 steps