ISRO building a second rocket launchport in Tamil Nadu’s Kulasekarapattinam
Context:
- Recently Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the second rocket launchport of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) at Kulasekarapattinam.
- The new launch port will be extensively and exclusively used for commercial, on-demand, and small satellite launches in the future.
Why does India need a new launchport?
- Due to the Union government’s recent policy announcing the opening of the space sector to private players, a sharp rise in the number of commercial launches is certainly expected.
- The new launch port will also ensure that ISRO’s first launchport, the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR in Sriharikota, is not overburdened with a high number of launches.
- While the SHAR facility will be only used for launching bigger and heavy-lift-off missions, the Kulasekarapattinam launchport will be used to launch smaller payloads.
- SHAR will also be available for India’s big missions to the Moon, Venus, and much touted human-flight mission, the Gaganyaan.
- It is important to note that private players could develop space-qualified sub-systems, build satellites, and even launch vehicles using the new launchport.
- The new facility will also facilitate dedicated launch infrastructure for all the on-demand commercial launches.
Why is the new ISRO launchport located in Tamil Nadu?
- Geographically, scientifically, and strategically, the Kulasekarapattinam launchport in Tamilnadu provides a natural advantage to ISRO’s future launches pertaining to the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV).
- It allows a direct southward and smaller launch trajectory for the light weight SSLVs carrying less fuel, the Kulasekarapattinam facility will boost ISRO’s attempts to enhance payload capacities.
- At present, the trajectory followed by all launches from SHAR are longer as they follow a path which requires the vehicle to skirt eastwards around Sri Lanka before taking the actual southward flight and this leads to consumption of additional fuel.
- But, the same would not be required for future launches from Kulasekarapattinam, which is geographically located several kilometers to the west of Colombo and which allows a straight southward flight and simultaneouslysaving the already limited fuel available onboard SSLV.
- Notably, both the launchports are located on Southern India, near the equator.
- According to former Isro scientists for a launch site close to equator the magnitude of the velocity imparted due to Earth’s rotation is about 450 m/s, which can lead to substantial increase in the payload for a given launch vehicle.
- Also, Geostationary satellites must necessarily be in the equatorial plane.
- So, for such (geostationary) satellites, closer the launch site is to the equator the better it is.
What is the status of the new launchport?
- The Tamil Nadu government has completed the acquisition of about 2,000 acres of land in Kulasekarapattinam.
- The land has now been handed over to ISRO.
- Last week chairman of ISRO noted that it may take up to two years for the completion of the construction at the site.
- The new facility could permit anywhere between 20 to 30 SSLV launches per year.
What are SSLVs and what are they used for?
- SSLV is the new small satellite launch vehicle which are developed by ISRO to cater for the launch of small satellites.
- SSLV has a three-stage launch vehicle, having a lift-off weight of about 120 tonnes and is 34 metres in length and 2 metres in diameter.
- It is designed with a three-stage solid propulsion and a liquid propulsion stage, which is the terminal stage.
- The SSLV missions are useful to launch small-sized satellites weighing between 10 to 500kg in to the Low Earth Orbit.
- Based on their size and weight, these are typically referred to as mini, micro or nano satellites.
- They are low on cost and intended satellite insertion into orbits also takes a shorter flight time.
- They are best suited for commercial and on-demand launches.
- In past, satellite projects built by college students and private players involved in the space sector have benefitted from SSLV missions.
What are the features of SHAR?
- It is situated along the east coast of Andhra Pradesh and is located 80 km off Chennai.
- SHAR at present provides launch infrastructure to all ISRO missions.
- SHAR is equipped with a solid propellant processing setup, static testing, and launch vehicle integration facilities, telemetry services which are useful for tracking and command network to oversee the launch and a mission control centre.
- SHAR has two launch complexes which are routinely used to launch the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), the Geosynchronous Space Launch Vehicles (GSLV) and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mk-III, now renamed as LVM3.
- The maiden launch from the First Launch Pad, built in the early 1990s, was in the year 1993.
- The Second Launch Pad saw its maiden launch in May 2005.
