India to conduct key test in crewed space mission on Oct 21
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The final mission is the first of its kind for India and will cost about $1.48 billion.
PHOTO: REUTERS
NEW DELHI – India will conduct a key test in its ambitious space mission Gaganyaan on Oct 21, launching an empty module into outer space and bringing it back to earth, Deputy Minister for Science and Technology Jitendra Singh said on Tuesday.
The final mission, expected to take place in 2024, is the first of its kind for the country and will cost about 90.23 billion Indian rupees (S$1.48 billion). It will involve launching a human-habitable space capsule with a crew of three to an orbit of 400km before bringing them safely back to land in Indian waters.
The word Gaganyaan in Hindi translates to sky craft.
The test in October will be conducted from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in southern India and will look at the efficacy of the crew escape system, which can be used to eject astronauts in emergencies.
It will be followed by another test flight carrying a robot to outer space before the final manned mission takes place, Mr Singh said.
“Before the ultimate manned ‘Gaganyaan’ mission, there will be a test flight next year, which will carry Vyommitra, the female robot astronaut,” he said.
While an exact timeline has not been revealed, the main mission is expected to be launched from the country’s main spaceport in Sriharikota before the end of 2024.
Mr Singh was speaking at a programme to commend Indian Space Research Organisation scientists associated with the Chandrayaan-3 mission, which made India the first country to land on the south pole of the moon.
In September, the country’s space agency quickly followed up on this success by launching a rocket to study the sun
