Hyderabad-based Skyroot to launch Vikram-1, India’s private orbital rocket

Vikram-1, the orbital rocket set to launch this year, is steadily progressing through various tests and development milestones

Hyderabad: Following its historic achievement as the first private company in India to launch the Vikram-S rocket last year, Hyderabad-based startup Skyroot Aerospace is now setting its sights on its next mission into orbit this year.

Vikram-1, the orbital rocket set to launch this year, is steadily progressing through various tests and development milestones. This versatile orbital launch vehicle has the capability of carrying multiple payloads to place in orbit.

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The testing of the fully 3D-printed regeneratively cooled Raman-II engine, which will power their Orbital Adjustment Module (OAM), was successful, the uppermost stage of Vikram-1. The test was supported by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

“The orbital launch is planned for the end of the year, subject to clearance from respective authorities,” said Pawan Kumar Chandana, co-founder and CEO of Skyroot Aerospace.

Vikram-1 has been engineered for the capability of transporting payloads of up to 480 kg to low-inclination orbits spanning 500 km. Moreover, it boasts a design that allows for assembly and launch readiness at any launch site within a 24-hour timeframe.

“This is a multi-stage rocket and is slated to be the first orbital rocket to be launched by the private sector in India and also South Asia,” he added.

As a leading contender in the Indian space-tech scene, their focus has always been on innovation in launch vehicles designed in terms of efficiency, economy and evolution. The technologies employed in this orbital launch include 3D printing, carbon composites, future-focused fuels and others.

Skyroot aims to open space for all by making space travel reliable, regular and on-demand. This calls for more innovative technologies that advance access to deeper areas of space, making space launches and downstream space services way too economical, accessible and reliable for the common man.

Skyroot’s choice to name their launch vehicles ‘Vikram’ pays homage to renowned scientist Vikram Sarabhai, the founder of the Indian space programme. Headquartered in Hyderabad, Skyroot Aerospace specialises in the development of launch vehicles for launching commercial satellites into space.