Gaganyaan’s First Uncrewed Mission Ready for December Launch with Half-Humanoid Robot: ISRO

New Delhi – The first uncrewed mission of India’s Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme, G1, is ready for launch in December, carrying the half-humanoid robot Vyommitra, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman V. Narayanan said on Thursday.

Speaking at a press briefing in the national capital, Narayanan also praised IAF Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla for his successful mission to the International Space Station — the first ever by an Indian. Shukla is among the astronauts selected for the crewed Gaganyaan mission.

“The first uncrewed mission, G1, will lift off by the end of this year, likely in December. Vyommitra, the half-humanoid, will be aboard,” Narayanan said, expressing gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for announcing the Gaganyaan programme on August 15, 2018.

Highlighting ISRO’s achievements over the past four months, he said, “The entire ISRO programme is a collaborative effort involving 20,000 employees, 450 industrial partners, and 300 academic partners. Today, our Gaganyatris are also joining hands in these programmes.”

He elaborated on ISRO’s various initiatives, including telemedicine, tele-education, television broadcasting, and real-time connectivity for around 8,600 trains and 21,000 shipping vessels. He also lauded the organisation’s disaster warning capabilities.

Narayanan noted, “ISRO supports 13 out of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals,” while also mentioning key space missions such as the Aditya L1 Sun mission and the NISAR satellite.

“We have made significant progress in Cryogenic engine technology, with tests going very well and many indigenisation activities underway. Regarding Aditya L1, we have released 13 terabits of data this year — a fantastic achievement capturing the Sun’s orbit.”

He added that the recently launched NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite “is healthy and all systems are functioning perfectly.”

“NISAR, launched on July 30, is a joint mission by NASA, JPL, and ISRO. It is the most expensive satellite ever built and was successfully placed in orbit by India’s GSLV launcher. Its antenna unfurled perfectly after 17 days and is now operational. We will share the first images in a few days.

“In the next two to three months, we will also launch a 6,500 kg US communication satellite on our launch vehicle. So far, India has launched 433 satellites from 34 countries,” the ISRO chief said.

— With inputs from IANS