India is all set to launch its first privately developed rocket into space, which many believe will open new avenues and herald a new era for start-ups in the country’s space sector.
Skyroot Aerospace, a space start-up in Hyderabad, will launch the Vikram S on November 18.
The rocket will carry three payloads — two Indian and one foreign ― on a sub-orbital mission, a trajectory that does not complete the Earth's orbit.
In rocket science jargon, a payload can differ depending on the rocket's mission, but in civilian space missions, it is normally a suite of different sensors that monitor factors such as temperature, humidity and radiation levels.
Vikram S will be launched from the Indian Space Research Organisation’s launchpad at Sriharikota, a barrier island in southern Andhra Pradesh, in an event overseen by the country's Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh.
The rocket will help validate the technology in Skyroot’s Vikram series of space launch vehicles, Skyroot co-founder Naga Bharath Daka said.
The Vikram series
The Skyroot Vikram series is named after Dr Vikram Sarabhai, the founder of India's space programme.
Skyroot Aerospace, which is developing three variants of the Vikram rocket, has named the maiden mission Prarambh, meaning “the beginning” in Hindi.
The three-stage rocket will have a sub-orbital flight to demonstrate the technological advances being made by the private sector in the country.
It will carry the three payloads to an altitude of 120 kilometres above Earth's surface to cross the Karman line at an altitude of 100km ― the point between the Earth's atmosphere and space.
The rocket was unveiled last week by S Somanath, the chairman of ISRO, the national space agency of India. It was scheduled to be launched on November 15 but was delayed due to weather conditions.
It has been given clearance for technical launch by In-Spacee, the regulator for private space industry investors and technology developers.
The space sector in India is largely led by the government.
Despite being among a handful of spacefaring nations in the world, India accounts for about 2 per cent of the space economy, according to government figures.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in 2020 opened the sector to allow private sector participation and enable the Indian space program to stay cost competitive in the global space market, and thus create more jobs in the space sector.
ISRO has signed agreements with more than 40 companies to assist them with space technology and build processes from the ground up.
Skyroot Aerospace, established in 2018, has more than 200 team members, and became India's first private space technology company after it signed an agreement with ISRO for sharing facilities and expertise last year.
"Vikram S is our technology demonstrator launch vehicle. We have a fleet of launch vehicles on series and this is specifically designed to demonstrate our technology for the other rockets, like Vikram 1," Sireesh Pallikonda, business development lead at Skyroot Aerospace, told The National.
“This will open access to space, so far it was just the government that was launching, but now it will be a new horizon for companies to have access to space. With participation of more companies and private participation we can generate more revenues and also there is a lot of talent and it will give opportunities to fulfil ambitions of those who want to work in rocketry,” he said.
The 545m rocket will carry three satellites from Space Kidz India, a Chennai-based aerospace start-up, N-Space Tech India and Armenia's Bazoomq.
At 25 seconds after lift-off and at an altitude of 17.9km, the rocket’s engine will burn out, ejecting its payload at an altitude of 81.5km.
“FunSAT is a 2.5kg mass with 80 payloads built by students from the US, Indonesia, Singapore and India. These are middle school students who are patiently and with absolute excitement waiting to see their satellite go up,” Srimathy Kesan, the founder and chief executive of Space Kidz India, told The National. “The entire process took eight to nine months to complete.”
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Trivia: Was the voice of three characters in the Emirati animation, Shaabiyat Al Cartoon
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Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.
Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born.
UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.
A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.
EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
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Top goalscorers in Europe
34 goals - Robert Lewandowski (68 points)
34 - Ciro Immobile (68)
31 - Cristiano Ronaldo (62)
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23 - Jamie Vardy (46)
*NOTE: Haaland's goals for Salzburg count for 1.5 points per goal. Goals for Dortmund count for two points per goal.
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British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
