Superpower by 2026 it seems
India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
11–20 of 230 posts
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#12The first, second and third stages all being solid rockets also means India now has a global-range ICBM, with only a little bit of modification needed to make it storable in a silo. Privately developed, but I would be astonished if the Indian military isn't well aware of this new capability.
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#134 stages feels like a lot of added complexity for your first launch. I assume it gives you more performance margin to drop weight/stages more often?
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#144 stages feels like a lot of added complexity for your first launch. I assume it gives you more performance margin to drop weight/stages more often?
It's three solid rocket boosters stacked on top of each other and a very tiny liquid fueled engine on the 4th stage. I would be interested in what the delta/v stats/capability of the 4th stage booster are with 350 kg payload.
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#15The first, second and third stages all being solid rockets also means India now has a global-range ICBM, with only a little bit of modification needed to make it storable in a silo. Privately developed, but I would be astonished if the Indian military isn't well aware of this new capability.
The mil have had solid propulsion for a while https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agni-VI
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#16A small but bright light in an economy where manufacturing jobs are hard to come by (https://archive.ph/Haj8n).
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#17The first, second and third stages all being solid rockets also means India now has a global-range ICBM, with only a little bit of modification needed to make it storable in a silo. Privately developed, but I would be astonished if the Indian military isn't well aware of this new capability.
The mil have had solid propulsion for a while https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agni-VI
Right, but see the details for estimated range and the map. Not that India has any foreseeable need to nuke Argentina but it's not in range. It's entirely possible the public data is wrong and the Agni VI has a global range.
But by definition if you can put something into a 350x350 km low earth orbit (something like 7800m/s total delta V) you could also deliver a re-entering payload from your launch site to any other spot on earth, within the limitations of the inclination you're launching to.
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
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Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#194 stages feels like a lot of added complexity for your first launch. I assume it gives you more performance margin to drop weight/stages more often?
A partially empty stage wastes mass on propellant tanks sized for the full load. The mathematical ideal would be an infinite number of infinitesimally small stages.
Re: India's first privately-developed rocket reaches orbit on debut launch
#204 stages feels like a lot of added complexity for your first launch. I assume it gives you more performance margin to drop weight/stages more often?
4 stages is certainly a lot more than most rockets, but most rockets don’t use solid rocket stages. Solid rocket motors are generally much more reliable/ simpler than liquid fueled stages, but they can’t be throttled or turned off early which makes it hard to achieve precise orbits. My guess is the extra stages allow for better control by carefully choosing when to light the next stage. The scout family of rockets are also 4 stage solid rockets and probably a good comparison.