Space Technology

By 2025, the so-called space economy is projected to grow to $600 billion from $447 billion in 2020, according to Ernst & Young estimates

An earth-observation satellite jointly developed by NASA and ISRO that will help study Earth's land and ice surfaces in greater detail is all set to be shipped to India later this month for a possible launch in September. ISRO Chairman S Somanath visited NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in the US state of California on Friday to oversee the final electrical testing of the NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) satellite before being shipped to India. This mission will be a powerful demonstration of the capability of radar as a science tool and help us study Earth's dynamic land and ice surfaces in greater detail than ever before, Somanath said at the formal send-off ceremony organised at the JPL which was attended by senior scientists from the two space agencies. Later this month, the SUV-size payload will be moved into a special cargo container for a 14,000-kilometer flight to the U R Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru. ISRO and NASA joined hands in 2014 to build the 2,80

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday allocated nearly Rs 12,544 crore to the Department of Space as India plans a human spaceflight - Gaganyaan - next year and sets out to explore the moon and neighbouring planets. The allocation is about 8 per cent lower than the Budget Estimate of Rs 13,700 crore for 2022-23, which was slashed to Rs 10,530.04 crore in the Revised Estimate. The largest chunk of the allocation -- to the tune of Rs 11,669.41 crore -- has gone to central sector schemes or projects such as the human spaceflight centre and various institutions of the department that deal with launch vehicle and satellite projects, including developmental and operational initiatives. Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-Space), the government's single-window body to deal with the private sector, received Rs 95 crore allocation against Rs 21 crore in the Revised Estimate. A large portion of the allocation, Rs 53 crore, has been earmarked for capital ..

A highlight of the NASA-ISRO cooperation is the Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) mission, planned for next year

India's nascent private space sector has presented a wishlist of tax incentives and a production-linked incentive scheme in the upcoming Union Budget to boost local manufacturing and spur research and development. "In the 2023-24 Union Budget, we would like to request a space-based production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for space tech startups to help boost local manufacturing and encourage capability building within the country," Awais Ahmed, the co-founder and chief executive officer of Pixxel, a space startup based in Bengaluru, told PTI. Last year, Pixxel became the first Indian startup to launch its own hyperspectral imaging satellite, "Shakuntala", onboard SpaceX's rideshare rocket and followed it up with another similar satellite, "Anand", using the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) PSLV rocket. It plans to have a constellation of earth observation satellites soon. "In the Union Budget 2023-24, we request a further Rs 100 crore issuance as viability gap funding ..

The space tech startups identified by ISRO will be on-boarded onto the aMicrosoft for Startups Founders Hub' platform, that supports startups at every stage of their journey-from idea to unicorn

Company says its technology helps in all-weather imaging without atmospheric interference

Roughly 70% of these start-ups were launched after 2020; of $245 mn that the sector has received in last seven years, $198 mn came after 2020

Development follows Skyroot Aerospace's launch of Vikram-S rocket on a sub-orbital flight from Sriharikota on Nov 18

ISRO's journey into the indigenous rockets began with a sounding rocket in 1963

Spacetech startup Pixxel is set to launch its third hyperspectral satellite Anand onboard ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from the Sriharikota spaceport on Saturday. Anand is a hyperspectral microsatellite weighing less than 15 kg but having more than 150 wavelengths that will enable it to capture images of the earth in greater detail than today's non-hyperspectral satellites that have not more than 10 wavelengths. The imagery from the satellite can be used to detect pest infestation, map forest fires, identify soil stress and oil slicks amongst other things, a statement from Pixxel said on Monday. "After more than 18 months of delay, many many retests, and more than two years of sweat and hard work by the team, we are finally launching this week," Awais Ahmed, Founder and CEO of Pixxel said on Twitter. Founded by Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal, Pixxel became the first Indian company ever to launch a commercial satellite Shakuntala in April using Elon Musk's SpaceX'

The launch of a sounding rocket by Skyroot marks the start of a surge in start-ups entering a sector that was opened up only in June 2020

A Nasa-like PPP policy could make India an aerospace powerhouse

Company behind privately developed rocket is looking for investors, says its co-founder

An Indian firm is planning to ferry tourists near space in a spaceship attached to a unique high-altitude balloon system by 2025. Inspired by Elon Musk's SpaceX, the Mumbai-based Space Aura Aerospace Technology Pvt Ltd company has begun to build a space capsule measuring 10 feet x 8 feet, which can carry six tourists besides the pilot into space at a time. However, the space capsule will remain within 35 km radius above the earth. The company presented a prototype of the space capsule named SKAP 1 at a science exhibition 'Akash Tatva' here, which got great response from scientists and common people alike. The firm has set itself a target of 2025 for beginning its flight into space, Space Aura founder and CEO Akash Porwal told PTI. Two places have been identified in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, from where the flight into space can be launched, and a decision in this regard will be taken soon, he said. The company is busy trying to achieve its target with the help of scientists fr

Why did NASA ram DART into an asteroid?

American space agency NASA recently conducted a planned mission to hit a cruising asteroid in space, as a part of its first planetary defense technology demonstration. Let's find out more about it

The SSLV-D1/EOS-02 mission by the Indian space agency is aimed at garnering a larger pie in the small launch vehicles market, as it can place the satellites into Low Earth Orbit

In a reply in Parliament, MoS Space Jitendra Singh said an unmanned flight would be sent to space in the first trial. While in the second, a robot named Vyomitra will be sent to space

India has given a boost to self-reliance in safeguarding its space assets with ISRO System for Safe and Sustainable Space Operation and Management (IS4OM)

The government has come out with a policy to encourage participation of private companies in space technology as part of reforms in the field, ISRO chief S Somanath said on Saturday. The government would consult with industries and startups to strengthen the space eco systems under the public- private partnership in infrastructre, remote-sensing and development of new technology, Somanath told reporters on the sidelines of 26th convocation of Karunya University here. With regard to investment, he said it would be 100 per cent for Indian companies and 70 per cent through FDI with the approval of the Centre. To a question on the launch of small satellite launch vehicle (SSLV), Somanath said it would happen by this month-end or at the beginning of August. Asked about starting a launchpad at Kulasekharapatnam in Tamil Nadu, he said the State government has allotted 2,000 acres of land and after developing the required infrastructure, it may be ready by another two years. On the much