After the success of Chandrayaan-3, ISRO is now preparing for Chandrayaan 4 and 5. ISRO chief Dr. S. Somnath said on Tuesday (August 20) that the space agency has prepared the design for the next phase of moon mission. The process of getting approval from the government for this is underway.
The Chandrayaan-4 mission includes bringing lunar rocks and soil to Earth after a soft landing on the lunar surface, launching a spacecraft from the Moon, performing a space docking experiment in lunar orbit and returning the samples to Earth.
Somnath also said that ISRO has plans to launch 70 satellites in the next 5 years. He gave this information in a program organized by All India Council for Technical Education and Indian Space Association.
Chandrayaan-3 work has been completed
Somnath said that we have many missions to go to the moon. Chandrayaan-3 work has been completed. Now the design of Chandrayaan 4 and 5 has been prepared and we are seeking approval from the government.
We plan to launch 70 satellites in the next five years. This includes a constellation of low Earth orbit satellites to meet the requirements of various ministries and departments of the government.
These 70 satellites include four for NavIC Regional Navigation System (NAVIC) to provide positioning, navigation and timing services, INSAT 4D weather satellite, Resourcesat series of satellites, Cartosat satellites for remote sensing and high resolution imaging.
ISRO is developing these things
- Somnath said that ISRO is also planning to develop ISRO Oceansat series and Technology Demonstration Satellite 01 and 02 for technology demonstration of electric propulsion systems, quantum.
- ISRO is also developing data relay satellites for the Gaganyaan mission, high throughput satellites to provide internet connectivity and GSAT satellites, which are being prepared to be launched to the US on SpaceX’s Falcon rocket.
- ISRO is also planning to launch a whole series of Earth observation satellites in the next five years.
ISRO is re-evaluating Mission Venus
Somnath said that ISRO has put the previously planned Mission Venus on hold for now. We are re-evaluating the mission. ISRO had earlier said that the target launch year for Chandrayaan-4 mission is 2028.
The first unmanned mission of the Gaganyaan project is scheduled to be launched in December this year. All the stages of the rocket have already reached the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.
The crew module is being built at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram and the service module is being integrated at the UR Rao Satellite Centre in Bangalore.
The crew escape system has already reached Sriharikota. All the systems are reaching Sriharikota in the next one to one and a half months, where final testing and integration will take place.
Gaganyaan is India’s first human space flight mission under which four astronauts will go to space. The mission can be launched by the end of 2024 or 2025. Gaganyaan will have a 3-day mission, under which a team of astronauts will be sent to the Earth’s orbit 400 KM above. After this, the crew module will be landed safely in the sea. If India succeeds in its mission, it will become the fourth country to do so. Earlier, America, China and Russia have done this.
On the occasion of Independence Day, ISRO has released a video of the training of the astronauts of the Gaganyaan mission. The video shows that the astronauts are being trained in a simulated condition like space. ISRO has shared this video on the social media platform ‘X’. In the video, the astronauts are doing yoga inside the space module. They are being trained according to the spacecraft, zero gravity and other challenges in space.