India plans to set up separate space station says ISRO
India plans to have its own space station the in future and modalities for it will be worked out after the first manned mission, Gaganyaan, scheduled to be launched by August 2022, Dr. Sivan, Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said.
“We want to have a separate space station. We will launch a small module for microgravity experiments...,” Dr. Sivan said addressing the media. “That is our ambition,” he stated.
"At present, our focus is to carry out Chandrayaan-2 in July and Gaganyaan in 2022, which will be India's first human mission to space," he said. Gaganyaan would carry three astronauts into space, and their selection process is likely to be completed in the next six months. The astronauts will then undergo rigorous training for nearly two years.
The Indian space agency also announced its ambitious mission to the Sun, named Aditya-L1, in 2020. Its main aim would be to study the Sun's corona which has a major impact on climate change on earth.
"We want to study its effects on climate change. We hope to launch it in the first half of next year," he said.
ISRO also announced its mission to Venus, which will be launched over the next few years. "Not only Sun and Moon, but we also hope to reach other planets, like Venus," said Dr. Sivan. The mission would carry as many as 23 payloads.
The detailed project report on setting up a space station will be submitted to the government after the Gaganyaan mission.
Giving out broad contours of the planned space station, Dr. Sivan said it has been envisaged to weigh 20 tonnes and will be placed in an orbit of 400 km above the earth where astronauts can stay for 15-20 days. The time frame is 5-7 years after Gaganyaan, he stated.
Speaking about the progress of Gaganyaan, Dr. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for Space, said the project was on track to be realized by India’s 75th Independence Day or even earlier. “Cost approved by Union Cabinet just before the Moral Code of Conduct came in was ₹10,000 crore,” Dr. Singh said.
The Gaganyaan mission aims to send a 2-3 person crew to space for a period of seven days. The spacecraft will be placed in a low earth orbit of 300-400km.
