Gaganyaan crewed mission delayed; Will miss 75th Independence-Day deadline
India's ambitious space initiative Gaganyaan will launch its second unmanned mission sometime in 2022-23 as per a statement by Union Minister Jitendra Singh. The actual human spaceflight module will be launched at an unspecified time thereafter. The crewed mission was originally scheduled to coincide with India's 75th Independence Day, but the 2022 timeline was pushed ahead by the pandemic.
The mission originally intended to achieve human spaceflight by sending a three-member crew into orbit for up to a week. However, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) cited coronavirus lockdowns as the primary reason behind the delay. Indian astronaut training at the Gagarin Research & Test Cosmonaut Training Center (GCTC) in Russia was also halted for almost two months last year on account of the global pandemic.
Now, the first unmanned test mission is scheduled for December 2021, followed by a second unmanned space flight sometime between 2022 and 2023. The human spaceflight demonstration will be attempted thereafter, depending on the success of the two unmanned test missions. Four Indian astronauts have resumed training at the GCTC since May 12 last year and have been undergoing space flight conditioning in Russia.
The manned mission will be launched into orbit using India's Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) MK III space vehicle. The three-stage ISRO rocket will inject the orbital module into space and separate following proper orientation, after which the crew module will be separated. The crew module will leave the Earth orbit and land back into the ocean at the conclusion of the week-long mission.
While India has conducted unmanned space missions, crewed space missions call for sophisticated safety requirements that are beyond the operational experience of ISRO. The national space agency is therefore reaching out to global suppliers for help with the manned mission. Boeing and ISRO are currently in talks for procuring components such as simulator, crew seats, and inner lining of the space capsule.
