Space Wrap: From Sriharikota to Leh, preparations for Gaganyaan mission in full swing

While the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has not come out with any firm dates as to when it plans to accomplish the launches it was scheduled to undertake this year which includes the first uncrewed mission of Gaganyaan (G1), April saw the space agency executing the second Integrated Air Drop Test (IADT-02) for the mission.

During the IADT-02 conducted at Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota a simulated Crew Module, weighing about 5.7 tonnes, that is equivalent to the mass of the Crew Module in the first uncrewed Gaganyaan mission (G1), was lifted by an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter to an altitude of about 3 km and released over a designated drop zone in sea, near to Sriharikota coast. The successful conduct of this test is a significant step towards the readiness for the G1 mission.

Staying on with Gaganyaan in another corner of the country at altitude of around 3,500 metres above sea level the four Indian astronauts selected for the mission along with scientists, engineers and medical teams were subjected to a weeklong behavioral study.