The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully carried out the Reusable Launch Vehicle Autonomous Landing Mission in Karnataka.
The test of Reusable Launch Vehicle RLV LEX was conducted at the Aeronautical Test Range in Chitradurga in the early hours today.
A Chinook Helicopter of the Indian Air Force carried the launch vehicle to a height of 4.5 kms and released it in mid-air.
Based on 10 parameters like velocity, altitude and approach, the Reusable Launch Vehicle performed the landing maneuvers at 350 kilometers per hour speed, using the integrated navigation, guidance and control system and completed autonomous landing on the air strip at 7.40 am today.
This has successfully achieved the autonomous precise landing of the Space vehicle.
The navigation systems, instrumentation and sensors were developed by ISRO in house. CEMILAC, ADE and ADRDE contributed to the test along with ISRO and IAF. With this successful test, the dream of developing a Reusable Space Vehicle in India has taken ISRO one step closer to realising that dream.
ISRO Chairman S Somnath along with Senior Scientists from ISRO, namely Dr S Unnikrishnan Nair, Shyam Mohan, Dr. Jayakumar, Ramakrishna and Muthupandian witnessed the test and congratulated the team.
