ISRO to launch satellites to demonstrate docking, undocking of spacecraft

ISRO is set to launch two satellites on Monday night from the Sriharikota spaceport to demonstrate docking and undocking of spacecraft in orbit, which will make India the fourth country in the world to achieve the feat.

The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) warhorse rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) will place the two satellites -- SDX01 and SDX02 -- in a 476-km circular orbit and attempt the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDEx) in the first week of January, the space agency officials said.

"This mission will mark India's entry into the exclusive league of nations capable of mastering space docking," Union Science and Technology Minister Jitendra Singh said.

 

The SpaDEx mission is expected to be a stepping stone for India's future endeavours in space exploration which include getting rocks and soil from the moon on Earth, the proposed Bharatiya Antariksha Station and landing an astronaut on the lunar surface.

Only the US, Russia and China have mastered space docking technologies.

"The primary objective of the SpaDeX mission is to develop and demonstrate the technology needed for rendezvous, docking, and undocking of two small spacecraft (SDX01, which is the Chaser, and SDX02, the Target) in a low-Earth circular orbit," an ISRO official said.

The secondary objective of the mission includes demonstration of the transfer of electric power between the docked spacecraft, which is essential for future applications such as in-space robotics; composite spacecraft control and payload operations after undocking.

"This capability is vital for India's lunar and interplanetary missions. Docking technology enables multi-launch missions and supports future human spaceflight," Singh said.

After the demonstration of docking and undocking experiments, the two satellites will continue to orbit the Earth for standalone missions for two years.

The SDX01 satellite is equipped with a High Resolution Camera (HRC) and SDX02 has two payloads -- Miniature Multispectral (MMX) payload and Radiation Monitor (RadMon).

These payloads will provide high-resolution images, natural resource monitoring, vegetation studies and on-orbit radiation environment measurements which have numerous applications, ISRO said.

The PSLV-C60 mission also carries 24 payloads from various ISRO labs, private start-ups and educational institutions for carrying out experiments in space.

These 24 payloads are mounted on the fourth stage of the PSLV rocket which remains in orbit for a few weeks before falling back on the Earth.

PS4-Orbital Experiment Module (POEM) provides an opportunity for the scientific community to carry out certain in-orbit microgravity experiments for an extended duration of up to three months using the platform, which otherwise would end up as space debris immediately after the mission objective of injecting the primary payloads of the mission.