The Hyderabad-based private company Skyroot Aerospace has created new history in India’s space programme, successfully launching its “Vikram-1” rocket into space. It is India’s first privately built rocket to succeed in an orbital mission. The rocket was launched from the Sriharikota launch centre at 12:05:30pm local time on Saturday. Though the launch had been scheduled for 11:30am, it was deliberately delayed for a while by a mission-control decision at the last moment. The mission was declared a success at 12:21pm when the payload was placed in its designated orbit; commentators said, “Hello space, we have arrived.”
Through this mission, named “Aagman,” India’s private space sector has formally entered the global launch market, and Skyroot Aerospace has joined the small group of companies worldwide able to build and successfully launch an orbital rocket with their own technology. Standing as tall as a seven-storey building, the multi-stage “Vikram-1” is built entirely of carbon composite, using a 3D-printed engine and high-power solid-fuel boosters developed with Skyroot’s own technology. The rocket can carry small satellites of up to 350 kg into low Earth orbit (LEO). On its first test flight it was launched targeting a 450-kilometre orbit at a 60-degree inclination.
“Vikram-1” carried technology-demonstration payloads from Graha Space, CosmoServe, DCubed and Skyroot’s own “Scope,” as well as Cosmos Diamonds’ artwork “Cosmic Bloom” and tiny sculptures of Sir CV Raman, Dr Vikram Sarabhai and Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. Named after the father of India’s space programme, Dr Vikram Sarabhai, “Vikram-1” is Skyroot’s next big step, following the successful launch of the “Vikram-S” sub-orbital rocket in November 2022. Skyroot Aerospace said the signatures of the engineers, technologists and team members involved in building “Vikram-1” had also been preserved on it, as a mark of respect to all who contributed to India’s historic private space mission.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report