What is the name of India's reusable launch vehicle currently being developed by ISRO?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
Correct Answer: RLV-TD
Explanation
The Reusable Launch Vehicle - Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD) is a prestigious technology evaluation project being developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). The primary objective of this mission is to develop essential technologies for a fully reusable launch vehicle, which will drastically reduce the cost of putting satellites into orbit.
The configuration of RLV-TD resembles a winged aircraft, combining the low-cost features of a traditional rocket with the aerodynamic maneuverability of an airplane. ISRO has successfully conducted multiple critical milestone tests for this project, including the autonomous landing missions (LEX) where the unmanned winged vehicle was released from an Indian Air Force helicopter to execute precise, high-speed autonomous landings on a runway. The final scaled-up operational version will serve as the first stage of a two-stage-to-orbit (TSTO) reusable launch vehicle.
Key Points
PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) and GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) are ISRO's highly reliable, fully expendable operational rocket families, meaning their stages are discarded in the ocean or atmosphere after launch and cannot be flown again.
The RLV-TD development roadmap consists of a series of demonstration missions: the Hexagonal Atmospheric Re-entry Experiment (HEX), the Landing Experiment (LEX), the Return Flight Experiment (REX), and the Scramjet Propulsion Experiment (SPEX).
By mastering reusable technology, ISRO aims to cut down space launch costs by nearly 80%, paving the way for sustainable future space exploration, including cargo delivery and satellite servicing.
Important Questions and Answers
Question: What is the significance of the 'LEX' tests recently conducted by ISRO for the RLV project?
Answer: The Landing Experiment (LEX) successfully demonstrated the autonomous landing capability of the vehicle under exact real-world conditions simulating a return from space.
Question: Will the final operational version of India's reusable launch vehicle be a single-stage or a two-stage-to-orbit system?
Answer: It is being designed as a Two-Stage-To-Orbit (TSTO) launch vehicle system.