Category: Space

  • Delhi is not far

    [Originally written when I moved to blot.im, here.]

    India setup the headquarters for its space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in Bengaluru to stay far away from political influence or interference. Or so, the legend goes. But it’s success has got it Delhi’s attention.

    The political interference began with Delhi giving ISRO a target of 2022 for flying an Indian into low earth orbit in an Indian vehicle. The opening up of the space sector and the creation of various institutions to regulate the sector have still not stabilized. The lack of a Space Act is a big part of this lack of stability.

    In a recent podcast episode of The Seen and the Unseen, K P Krishnan suggests that the government is shaking up institutions that it sees as being captured by elites. I wonder if it is doing the same to ISRO and the space sector. If so, this is a welcome move.I think the engineering and the science focus of the space sector may save it more than anything else.

    The government is the only institution that can invest in space and wait patiently (as it has for the past seventy years) as it develops. Even with the opening up of the space sector, the sector will need continued patronage of the government to grow. The private sector can, at best, make more efficient use of the capital that the government deploys for developing new technologies and applies it in various fields.

  • Space InvITs?

    Financial influencer Sharan Hegde’s newsletter today introduced me to the concept of Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs). In his words, InvITs are:

    Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) offer you partial ownership in infrastructure projects.
     

    They are trusts that hold, manage, and make investments in both finished and ongoing infrastructure projects.
     

    These trusts provide income through dividends, interest, and capital gains.

    The infrastructure projects include telephone towers, electricity distribution networks, public roads, highways etc.

    Sharan Hegde, REITs vs InvITs (newsletter dated 3 November 2023)

    I wondered how this could be applied to the space sector in India.

    I think these could be easily used to build launch pads, wind tunnel testing infrastructure, generic (which can be used by a large group of space companies) clean rooms, etc. Maybe they can be used to build satellites as well?

  • Reusable Satellites – Separate Payload from rest of the Satellite Structure

    Blue Origin launched a new platform called Blue Ring on 16 October 2023. Blue Ring’s design seems to me to be similar to ISRO’s PSLV Orbital Experimental Module (POEM). But, this gave me another idea that I wanted to write about here.

    Idea

    Separate payload from rest of the satellite structure. Only launch the payload to orbit. Select from a multitude of satellite buses that fits the requirements of your mission.

    Once the mission is completed, payload can be removed and disposed off. The satellite structure can host another payload.

    If the satellite structure’s life is complete, the payload can be moved to another satellite structure of your choice.

  • Chandrayaan 3 landed successfully

    I watched the landing of Chandrayaan 3 at home with my wife and children. I also celebrated with them.

    Once completed, we had a Zoom call with members of Chalchitra Talks where we spoke for half an hour about the landing and I answered questions regarding the mission to the best of my ability.

    The lack of images since the landing has been frustrating. There were many conspiracy theories to try and explain the lack of images. There was speculation that the images were kept on hold for the Prime Minister to release them. This turned out to be unfounded. The images have still not been released!

    During an interaction with the Malayalam media (translated by me from Malayalam on Twitter and Mastodon), it became clear that this is simply because of poor camera angles and direction of sunlight at the landing site!

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  • Chandrayaan 3 landing

    Exciting news awaits as Chandrayaan 3 initiates its descent to the lunar surface today at 4:45 PM (IST)!

    I have the privilege of joining a lively group at Chalchitra Talks to watch the highly anticipated webcast. Sharing this experience with others always amplifies the thrill!

    For the most up-to-date and reliable information about the landing, make sure to visit the vibrant community at r/ISRO: r/ISRO Chandrayaan 3 Updates. Get ready to witness history in the making!

    Watch the ISRO webcast on YouTube here.

  • India’s Space Roadmap 2047 – Gaganyaan

    Today we take a look at the third layer of the Roadmap – Gaganyaan, India’s Human Spaceflight programme.

    ISRO has posted several updates related to various hardware testing of the Gaganyaan components.

    The Gaganyaan missions will initially be unmanned, followed by missions to Low Earth Orbit with the eventual goal of establishing an Indian Space Station.

    The Artemis Accords will pave the way for human missions to the Moon after gaining experience in Low Earth Orbit.

    Technologies for planetary habitation is somewhere in the realm between science fiction and early technology demonstration of these technologies on analog stations on Earth.

    It will require the development of a heavy launcher to send larger structures to Low Earth orbit to build the Indian Space Station and to reduce the time needed (from more than a month to a few days) to send a spacecraft to the Moon. ISRO has a heavy launcher plan on the drawing boards at this stage.

    It will also need to develop a module (similar to the Russian Progress or SpaceX’s Cargo Dragon) that could carry payload to the Indian Space Station or even the Artemis Gateway.

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  • India’s Roadmap to Space 2047 – Spacecraft Innovation and Exploration

    I wrote about India’s Roadmap to Space 2047 in an earlier blog post. I wanted to share it without any comments at first, but then I decided to add my thoughts.

    The term “flexible COMSAT” refers to a type of satellite that can change its coverage, bandwidth, and frequency. This technology is being developed by ISRO, as mentioned in a PTI story published on the NDTV website.

    The term “full EPS satellite” is a reference to a type of satellite that uses only electric propulsion systems (EPS). The EPS system was first flown on the South Asia Satellite or GSAT-9, launched in 2017. The note says that this would reduce the mass of satellite from approximately 6 ton to 4 ton for the same capability.

    Quantum and Optical COMSATs are in various stages of development. Urbasi Sinha and her team in QuIC lab, Raman Research Institute, Bengaluru and an ISRO team at the Space Applications Center (SAC) are working on the building blocks of quantum satellites. The first optical communication payload was carried on the GSAT-29 mission.

    The Indian Space Station based R&D and economic activity is at least a decade into the future. Vellon Space, an Indian startup has been talking about space-age medicine and pharmaceutical manufacturing in space.

    Inter-planetary networks hold immense potential for the future of humanity! Imagine a world where communication seamlessly spans across celestial bodies, connecting Earth with other planets. The vision of becoming a multi-planet species becomes more tangible as these networks evolve. It all starts with the Earth-Moon system, but the possibilities for expansion are limitless. With initiatives like Artemis and the International Lunar Research Station, we are paving the way for a future where inter-planetary communication becomes a reality!

    ISRO may not focus as much on Earth observation satellites because there are many Indian space companies (Pixxel, SatSure, Dhruva etc.) working on remote sensing capabilities. They may continue with Earth observation missions until the startups can offer similar levels of data. On the other hand, there are fewer startups in the field of communications satellites technologies. The only one that comes to mind is Astrome among the NewSpace companies.

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  • India’s Space Road Map up to 2047

    Reddit user u/Blazing_Phoenix_100 shared this screenshot of India’s space road map shared at the G20 summit. I plan on using this chart not to point out times where ISRO has fell behind this timeline. They have done that plenty of times but to understand the general direction they are headed in.

    In the absence of an official roadmap on the ISRO website, this becomes an important indicator of priorities until an official roadmap appears.

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  • The Last Debris from Mission Shakti

    Update: The actual re-entry date is 14 June 2022.

    Someone had a question about what happened to the debris related to India’s ASAT test, Mission Shakti in 2019.

    Joseph Remis is the person I look to for this information.

    Tweet from Joseph Remis: Another consequence of the electromagnetic storm is to bring the fall of the last remaining debris of the Indian ASAT closer.

    If you open the image on the tweet, you would see the decay date is 11 May 2022. When I opened the quote tweets on this post, I saw this post from Astro_Neel.

    Tweet from Astro_Neel: This piece was otherwise predicted to come down by Aug 2028 (six years later)

    Astro_Neel makes the point that the piece of debris was likely to re-enter only in August 2028 (quoting Joseph Remis again). An electromagnetic storm that hit Earth in February 2022, that knocked out 38 Starlink satellites of SpaceX.

    The geomagnetic storm also led to reducing the time needed to decay the last piece of debris related to the Mission Shakti from August 2028 to June 2022.

    Update

    I was remis to not check the r/ISRO sub-Reddit before writing here. When I shared the blog post on the Fediverse, Ohsin pointed to the thread on Microsat-R where he had also been tracking the debris.

    @pradx Last tracked piece from Microsat-R debris decayed in 14 June 2022. I was also keeping track of it in PSLV-C44/Microsat-R launch thread over at reddit!

    Ohsin on the Fediverse

    He also shared this image with the final decay date indicated.

    Final update from the Satellite Catalog. Image from Ohsin.

  • What India must talk to France about Space?

    Suhasini Haidar, writing for The Hindu, talks about the upcoming visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to France. A key paragraph to highlight in the article:

    India and France are also hoping to strengthen ties over collaboration in space that dates back to the 1960s. Apart from collaborations in launching satellites, the two sides are also looking at training astronauts and partnerships in space industrial engineering, it is learnt.

    Haidar, Suhasini. “Co-Development Rather than Co-Production Will Be Focus of India-France Ties, Sources Say.” The Hindu, 6 July 2023

    France provided inputs on solid fuel technology to ISRO with the Centaures rocket in the 1970s. Working together on the Viking liquid engine, under an arrangement with the European Society for Propulsion (SEP), provided valuable inputs to develop India’s workhorse Vikas engine in the 1980s. The French helped in setting up the Liquid Propulsion Systems Center (LPSC) at Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu.

    Arianespace has provided launch service for various Indian communication satellites, as India struggled with mastering cryogenic technology. ISRO and CNES has worked together on two satellites related to climate studies, Megha-Tropiques and SARAL. A future collaborative mission, Trishna, is slated for launch in 2024.

    India and France can play an important role in space science. I would love to see a continuation of co-operation of Earth observation satellites that are built to study Earth’s climatic systems. I believe that collaboration with France particularly with the mission to Venus would be a shot in the arm for the Indian Venus Mission, called Shukrayaan. France has experience with working on the Vega missions with the Soviet Union.

    The study of Mars is a rosy colonization dream today. The study of Venus provides an understanding of where the Earth could be headed because of global warming and climate change. I think there must be as many if not more missions to Venus as there are missions to Mars today.

    France is also a signatory of the Artemis Accords, and along with Australia is trying to look for an international arrangements to govern access to and resources on the Moon. This is an essential middle path that India must try to support. Global supply chains are important to keep mission costs low.

    India must try to book cheaper slots on the Ariane 6. There is a 6 ton and higher category of satellites that Indian launch vehicles can currently not support. India must also try to get more French companies to try to fly on Indian launch vehicles. There could be an opportunity coming up during the period of transition between Ariane V and Ariane 6.

    At the industry level, I believe there are opportunities to collaborate in data sharing and data analysis. Indian space startups could try to provide satellite, satellite sub-systems, and propulsion systems to French startups.