ISRO Gaganyaan Manned Mission Could Take Place in December 2021

The ISRO Gaganyaan Manned mission is being targeted to take place in December 2021. Information regarding the same was provided by the Union Minister of State, Dr Jitendra Singh in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha on 4 December 2019, according to a PIB release.

The spacecraft is being designed to carry three people, and the crew selection and training process for Gaganyaan mission is progressing well including the training in Russia under the ISRO Gaganyaan mission, adds the release.

While the Indian Space Research Organisation has immense experience with respect to the launch vehicle, spacecraft management, and ground infrastructure, ISRO is planning to collaborate with national and international agencies for areas where it lacks experience such as human centric systems, crew training, crew recovery, etc.

The crewed vehicle is being planned to be launched on the GSLV Mk III and the design of the crew module has been completed as of May 2019. The space capsule will reportedly have life support and environmental control systems and also will be equipped with emergency mission abort and emergency escape that can be done at the first stage or second stage of the rocket burn.

ISRO has already signed MOUs with DRDO labs, Indian Air Force and Russian space agency. Some of the critical technologies to be provided by DRDO to ISRO include space food, space crew health monitoring, and emergency survival kit, radiation measurement and protection, parachutes for the safe recovery of the crew module and others.

Dr G Satheesh Reddy, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO, said the technological capabilities existing in DRDO laboratories for defence applications will be customised to meet the requirements of the human space mission of ISRO.