sslv: Decks cleared for first flight of SSLV; first stage test done | India News – Times of India

BENGALURU: Clearing the decks for the first flight of the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV), the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) on Monday successfully carried out the ground testing of the newly developed solid booster stage (SS1) for the new launch vehicle at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
The test happened at around 12.05 pm. “This is the last test before the flight (developmental flight),” S Unnikrishnan Nair, director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), which is developing the SSLV, told TOI.
Isro will now schedule the first developmental flight which will put into orbit EOS-2 or Microsat. While an official date for the developmental flight is yet to be arrived at, multiple scientists told TOI that it is expected to happen in the first half of this year.

A January review document from Isro accessed by TOI reads: “The first developmental flight of the SSLV, the SSLV-D1, is scheduled to launch the EOS-2, an earth observation satellite in the first quarter of 2022.”
According to Isro, all the propulsion parameters during the test are found satisfactory and “closely matching with the predictions”.
The SS1 motor is a three-segmented solid propulsion stage incorporating many new technologies and innovative processes including bond-free joint between the segments, high power electromechanical actuator with digital control electronics, optimised ignitor and simultaneous propellant casting of all segments.
All these systems and segments have now been successfully validated in the ground test. Monday’s successful testing, Isro says, has given sufficient confidence to proceed with the first developmental flight of SSLV (SSLV-D1). “…The remaining stages of SSLV (SS2 & SS3) have successfully undergone necessary ground tests and are ready for integration,” the space agency said.
Earlier, Isro had completed the SSLV Payload Fairing (SPLF) functional qualification test successfully and other testing activities are in progress.
TOI had reported that Isro will carry out this test this week while other crucial tests relating to the reusable launch vehicle technology demonstrator (RLV-TD) and Chandrayaan-3 programmes are also scheduled in the coming weeks.
Nair further added that once proven, each SSLV can be integrated and launched within 10 days. “That’s the beauty of an all-solid stage launch vehicle,” he said.
Designed to meet launch demand requirements cost-effectively, SSLV is a three-stage all-solid vehicle with the capability to launch up to 500kg satellite mass into Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
According to VSSC, the SSLV is a three-stage launch vehicle configured with three solid propulsion stages and a liquid propulsion-based Velocity Trimming Module (VTM) as a terminal stage.
“SSLV is 2m in diameter and 34m in length with a lift-off weight of around 120 tonnes. SSLV is capable of launching around 500kg satellites in a 500km planar orbit. The key features of SSLV are low cost, with low turnaround time, flexibility in accommodating multiple satellites, launch on-demand feasibility, minimal launch infrastructure requirements, etc,” the VSSC adds.