ISRO successfully tests human-rated HS200 solid rocket booster for Gaganyaan mission
The booster engine is part of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle MkIII (GSLV Mk III) rocket that would carry Indian astronauts to space.
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Friday successfully completed the static test of the human-rated solid rocket booster (HS200) at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota at 7.20am on Friday. The test was for ISRO's Gaganyaan programme.
"ISRO successfully completed the static test of a human-rated solid rocket booster (HS200) for the Gaganyaan Programme at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh on May 13, 2022, at 7:20 AM local time," the national space agency tweeted.
The booster engine is part of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle MkIII (GSLV Mk III) rocket that will carry Indian astronauts to space.
This full-duration test of the first stage of the launch vehicle marks a major milestone for the Gaganyaan programme.
The GSLV MK III rocket is a three-staged vehicle. The first stage is powered by solid fuel, the second by liquid fuel and the third is the cryogenic stage powered by liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.
The S200 motor - the first stage of the LVM3 launch vehicle designed to deliver 4,000 kg satellites to geosynchronous transfer orbit - was configured as a strap-on rocket booster. Design and development of the HS200 booster was completed at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Kerala's Thiruvananthapuram, and propellant casting was completed at Sriharikota.
India's first manned space flight mission - 'Gaganyaan' - is expected to launch next year.
The first crewed flight will entail two unmanned launches, the first of which is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2022 followed by the second launch at the end of the same year.
