ISRO conducts first successful hot test of Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System

In a massive development, the Indian Space Research Organization on Saturday successfully conducted the first hot test of the system Demonstration Model (SDM) of the Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System at the test facility of ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC) in Mahendragiri in Tamil Nadu. The System Demonstration Model (SDM), consisting of five 440 N engines and eight 100 N thrusters, was realized to qualify the propulsion system performance in the ground.

ISRO successfully conducts first hot test of the system Demonstration Model of Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System

ISRO shared the news of achieving another milestone via a tweet, where they wrote, “On August 28, 2021, ISRO successfully conducted the first hot test of the System Demonstration Model (SDM) of the Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System at the test facility of ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC), Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu.”

The test was conducted for a duration of 450 seconds, as per an official statement from ISRO. They further informed that the system performance met the test objectives and there was a close match with the pre-test predictions. Further, a series of hot tests are planned to simulate various mission conditions as well as off-nominal conditions.
 

The Service Module is a part of the Gaganyaan Orbital module and is located below the crew module, connected to it until re-entry. The Service Module (SM) Propulsion System consists of a unified bipropellant system consisting of five 440 N thrust engines and 16 '100 N Reaction Control system (RCS) thrusters' with MON-3 and MMH as oxidizer and fuel respectively.  
 

Chandrayaan 2 confirms presence of water on the Moon surface

Meanwhile, in another significant development, the ISRO Chandrayaan-2 validated the presence of water on the moon’s surface. According to experts, this will open the gates of immense opportunities for future lunar exploration. In an interview with Zee Media, Dr. Mylswamy Annadurai, former Director of ISRO’s UR Rao Satellite, said that the data from the old M3 sensor and the new Chandrayaan 2 sensor have matched.

The orbiter of Chandrayaan 2 has a 5-micron spectrometer, hence it unambiguously confirms the findings of Chandrayaan-1, he said. Similar confirmations were made earlier by the Imaging infrared spectrometer (IIRS) instrument regarding the presence of hydroxyl as well as water molecules on the lunar surface.

With ANI Inputs 

Image: Twitter/ @ISRO