India will launch the first self-made space shuttle

On April 2, President of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Dr. K. Radhakrishnan said that within the next year, the country will launch its first self-made space shuttle.

Space shuttle Discovery.Illustration.

The Indian spacecraft is shaped like a plane, operating with the propulsion of a rocket engine.

On the first flight, the ship will fly up orbit 60km from the surface of the Earth, then glide back to the ground.

After this flight, Indian scientists will evaluate the effectiveness of advanced technologies used in ship construction such as automatic landing systems, aerodynamic systems, and cruise technology .

In subsequent flights, the ship will operate longer in space to test reliability as well as the ability to bring satellites to the higher orbit of the Earth.

According to Dr. Radhakrishnan, although there are many advantages, this shuttle project also faces some technological challenges. In particular, scientists must calculate the cost of ship construction with the actual benefits it can bring.

ISRO is expected to spend about 300 million rupees (more than $ 6.5 million) for the first test flight.

However, once successful, the shuttle will drastically reduce the cost of launching satellites to Earth orbit, as it can be used many times.

The cost of launching satellites into space by rocket boosters is about $ 15,000-20,000 / kg.

If the shuttle's reliability is guaranteed, it will be used to make flights that bring people to space.