Post Content The air drop test with the Gaganyaan-1 crew module was conducted off the Andhra Pradesh coast on Friday. (Source: ISRO)
In yet another step advancing towards the Gaganyaan mission, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Friday successfully conducted the air drop test involving the Crew Module.
Crew Module is the specially designed, pressurised capsule positioned at the uppermost area of the spacecraft. This houses the astronauts.
According to ISRO, the Indian Air Force’s Chinook helicopter dropped the crew module from an to an altitude of about 3km off the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SHAR) in the Bay of Bengal and released it over a designated drop zone in sea near the coast.
Involved in the Friday’s test was a simulated crew module weighing about 5.7 tonnes. This is similar in weight and dimension as the original crew module which will be deployed in the first uncrewed Gaganyaan mission expected to be announced anytime soon.
Once dropped and the crew module began its descent, ten parachutes of four types were deployed at various stages in a pre-planned sequence in under 90 seconds. This helped achieve the gradual reduction of the velocity ensuring for safe splashdown. The crew module was later recovered in coordination with the Indian Navy.
“This test validated the parachute-based deceleration systems in the crew module,” ISRO said in its statement on Friday.
The Gaganyaan mission involves three uncrewed and one crewed mission.
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