Last Updated: JANUARY 01, 2023, 12:50 IST
Delhi, India
While the embryonic startup industry is expected to thrive in the space applications market, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will shift its attention to science studies in 2023 with dedicated missions to the Sun Aditya and the Moon Chandrayaan3.
New Delhi, December 31: While the young start-up industry is expected to grow in the space applications segment, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will shift its attention to science investigations in 2023 with dedicated missions to the Sun (Aditya) and the moon (Chandrayaan-3).
The Gaganyaan project, India's first human space flight, will conduct a number of experiments in the coming year, with the first unmanned mission scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2023. These experiments will evaluate the performance of the human-rated launch vehicle, orbital module propulsion system, and recovery procedures.
According to Jitendra Singh, a Union Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, ISRO further aims to carry out the first runway landing experiment (RLV-LEX) of the reusable launch vehicle early next year from the Aeronautical Test Range in Chitradurga, Karnataka.
Indian start-ups made their presence known with the first sub-orbital launch by a commercial business, Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-S rocket, and the launches of Pixxel's hyperspectral satellites Shakuntala and Anand on SpaceX's Falcon-9 and ISRO's PSLV, respectively, in April and November.
A customer satellite will be sent into orbit by Skyroot Aerospace, which launched India's first privately constructed rocket in November, at some point in 2019. Agnikul Cosmos, a start-up based on the IIT-Madras campus, has also scheduled the test flight of its highly customizable Agnibaan rocket.
Awais Ahmed, co-founder and CEO of Pixxel, had previously told PTI, "We are creating six commercial hyperspectral photography satellites that would be ready for launch next year."
The initial orbital launches of many more rocket businesses throughout the world, according to Ahmed, will result in a rocket-themed game of thrones as they compete for the same group of clients launching satellites into orbit.
The start-ups are focusing on the enormous space applications market in the nation, which was previously the sole purview of ISRO. They are also planning to take tourists into space and have already carved out a niche for themselves in the earth imaging industry.
According to Chaitanya Dora Surapureddy, chief financial officer of DhruvaSpace, "the potential for cutting-edge space applications is immense, especially if established aerospace companies form partnerships with businesses that traditionally haven't ventured into orbit, e.g. pharmaceutical, agriculture companies."
Onboard ISRO's PSLV C-54 mission, DhruvaSpace launched two satellites, Thybolt 1 and 2, demonstrating the feasibility of amateur satellite communication that will support ham radio operations.
According to Surapureddy, DhurvaSpace has already signed a 20 crore rupee commercial deal to develop satellites.
According to Lt Gen A K Bhatt (ret.), Director General of the Indian Space Association (ISpA), "the number of space companies in India has now surpassed 100 and these businesses have attracted finance of more than USD 245.35 million."
At ISRO's Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Agnikul also debuted its first launchpad and mission control centre.
The space industry achieved some significant milestones in 2022, with NewSpace India Limited (NSIL) awarding a Rs 860 crore contract to the space conglomerate made up of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited for the commercial development of the following five Polar Satellite Launch Vehicles (PSLVs).
OneWeb also contracted with ISRO to use their launch vehicle to deploy 36 satellites from Sriharikota into low-Earth orbit. Next year, additional 36 satellites are anticipated to be launched as a follow-up.
It is known that the Indians aggressively competed for the OneWeb contract with ISRO after the crisis in the Ukraine forced the Russian space launch capabilities off the market.
The aggressiveness of the Indian space industry, according to Chaitanya Giri, a space consultant with Research and Information System for Developing Countries, is comparable to that of Sourav Ganguly's cricket side.
"Our previous strategy was extremely calm and gentlemanly, similar to the cricket squad captained by Mohammad Azharuddin. India's growing geopolitical importance is what's driving its newly discovered hostility. Additionally, the situation in Ukraine has made it impossible to do business with Russia. The Chinese market is similar. Now, India has the advantage "Giri said to PTI.
He advised Indian start-ups to compete for contracts abroad rather than turning to ISRO for business.
"They cannot rely on ISRO to support their company. It will be necessary for Indian space start-ups, MSMEs, and large corporations to negotiate commercial agreements with one another. These B-2-B agreements must expand, "added Giri. ZMN PTI SKU
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Last Updated: JANUARY 01, 2023, 12:50 IST
Delhi, India
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