What is the Humanoid Skull That ISRO Plans To Use In Gaganyaan Mission

New Delhi: ISRO has planned to send a humanoid's skull on the Gaganyaan mission before launching astronauts next year. The Gaganyaan project that envisages a demonstration of human spaceflight capability will launch a crew of 3 members to an orbit of 400 km for a 3-day mission and bring them back safely to earth, by landing in seawater. 

Why ISRO is Sending Humanoid's Skull to Space

Ahead of launching the actual humans into space, several studies are conducted using humanoids to collect vital data on the impacts of space travel on human bodies. This enables scientists to design the space capsule for a safe and comfortable flight for humans. 

Everything About Humanoid's Skull Designed by ISRO

The humanoid robot's skull designed at ISRO's ISRO's Thiruvananthapuram unit has been named Vyommitra. It weighs 800 grams and measures 200mm x 220 mm.  It is made from a high-strength aluminium alloy to endure pressure and vibration in space. 

Design 

Vyommitra will not only resemble a skull, but the upper body of a human, which will include movable arms, a face, and a neck. It will be equipped with sensors to perform human-like functions and assess the impact of humans travelling to space. The Vyommitra will have parts that can move in different directions, giving multiple degrees of freedom. 

Progress So Far

“This half-humanoid simulates the human-like characteristics of the upper torso of a human body and will primarily demonstrate operations such as Crew Console-related tasks. The skull is designed to withstand the vibrational loads experienced during the launch,” Padma Kumar E S, director of IISU, told an English Daily website.

“This configuration of the skull is part of the half-humanoid flying in the Gaganyaan mission. Ground qualification testing is over. Flight system has been realised and acceptance testing is currently under progress,” he added.

The Gaganyan programme is scheduled for the year 2025. Before the attempt to send humans into space, ISRO will conduct Gaganyan 1 and Gaganyan-2 missions. The G1 mission will be conducted in December, 2024. 

G1 will mainly test the safe re-entry of the spacecraft and its orientation upon its dive into the sea. The G2 mission will carry the robot- Vyommitra inside the human-rated pressurised crew module, where the astronauts would be seated in the actual flight. The humanoid will record all parameters that will be used to study the impacts of space flights on humans. 

Gaganyan Mission 

In February this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced the four Indian Air Force pilots who have been selected for the Gaganyaan mission, namely, Group Captain Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair, Group Captain Ajit Krishnan, Group Captain Angad Pratap and Wing Commander Shubhanshu Shukla. They have been undergoing training for the last few years.