India’s RLV-TD launch: All you need to know about the reusable space shuttle
India today successfully launched a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) space shuttle and here’s why it matters.
India on Monday successfully launched a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV) space shuttle, the first ever for the country. The ‘dummy’ RLV was launched from Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh into the orbit around Earth, and then glided back onto a virtual runway in the Bay of Bengal, some 500 kilometres from the coast. The 6.5 metre long ‘aeroplane’-like structure weighing 1.75 tons was hoisted into the atmosphere on a special rocket booster. “Mission accomplished successfully,” an Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) spokesman told PTI soon after RLV-TD HEX-01 was flight tested with the take off at 7 am. This is the first time ISRO has launched a winged flight vehicle. –
So why does India’s RLV Space Shuttle experiment matter so much and what is it all about?
The first experiment conducted was the hypersonic flight experiment, and the entire mission was around 10 minutes from liftoff to splashdown. The vehicle, however, will not be recovered, as it was a ‘dummy’. This RLV-TD is described as “a very preliminary step” in the development of a reusable rocket.
The final version of the resuable rocket will take 10 to 15 years to build according to ISRO, but Monday’s announcement marks the first step in that journey.
The reason for looking at reusable space shuttles is simple: these will be cost-effective going forward as scientists try and decode the mysteries of space. According to the ISRO website, “cost of access” to space remains high and a big detriment, and “a reusable launch vehicle” is seen a solution, while giving reliable and on-demand space access.
The RLV-TV could also bring down cost of launching rockets for carrying satellites into the earth’s polar and geo-stationary orbits in the future.
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