ISRO is busy with Gaganyaan. They have still managed to sneak in some reusability-related flights into Gaganyaan program, like TV-D1, and soon there will be TV-D2, followed by TV-D3 and TV-D4. There will also be further flights which demonstrate vertical landing.No launches from ISRO for last two months. They were supposed to have a launch every month. ISRO has done a lot but has lost out on launchers. SpaceX is launching 90% of all launches from around the world. Everyone else still relying on expendable launchers are dying even in the United States. I fear ISRO will continue to experiment with expendable launchers, 3D printed engines, etc and will get nowhere. But see spaceX is reusing stages 40 times or more and no one else can match its price. Very soon their startship will rock. My 2 cents.
Remember that ISRO Chairman S Somanath has told us that there are plans to build NGLV (they're calling it that now, but he's said they'll probably come up with a better name for it later on.) NGLV will be our SpaceX style of rocket which takes off and lands again on its tail. He wants this to happen within 5 years, through public-private partnership (we all know that actual timelines take longer than whatever is promised.)
Also, look at Agnikul aerospace -- they were set to launch their first kerolox rocket Agnibaan in early April, but had to call it off due to problems:
https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/bu ... 035230.ece
This Agnibaan mission, known as SORTeD (SubOrbital Technological Demonstrator) would have been the first ever launch of a kerosene-powered rocket in India. As you know, SpaceX's famous Falcon-9 uses kerosene with a liquid throttleable engine. So Agnikul is developing an important technology for VTVL reusability.
We absolutely have to master these technologies, since China is also developing them, and we can't afford to be left behind.
Statistics: Posted by sanman — 29 Apr 2024 20:35