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Skyroot Aerospace''s Vikram-1 Test Flight-1 has successfully reached orbit, marking the maiden flight of India''s first privately developed orbital-class rocket.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Skyroot Aerospace on the successful launch. The rocket completed its final burn and injected its payloads into a nearly 450-km orbit, making India the third country in the world with private orbital launch capability. The mission, named "Mission Aagaman", was executed from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The 24-metre carbon-composite rocket completed all planned flight stages, including stage separations and the firing of its Orbital Adjustment Module (OAM). The Orbital Adjustment Module fired its 3D-printed liquid engine for the final push to orbit. The module is designed to start, stop and restart in space. During the flight, Kalam-1200, the solid first stage, carried the rocket through the thickest part of the atmosphere before separating cleanly. The payload fairing was then separated, exposing the satellites to space for the first time. The second stage, Kalam-250, completed its burn and separated, followed by the ignition of Kalam-100, the smallest and highest-flying solid stage of Vikram-1. The solid-propulsion phase concluded with the separation of Stage 3, paving the way for the Orbital Adjustment Module to complete the mission. The Vikram-1 rocket, powered by three solid-fuel stages and a liquid orbital adjustment module, is designed to deploy payloads up to 350 kg into a 450-km Low Earth Orbit (LEO). The maiden flight carried multiple payloads, including the "Diamond Lotus", a lab-grown diamond from Bengaluru-based Cosmos Diamonds. Among the payloads on Vikram-1 Test Flight-1 is something truly special--a handwritten postcard from PM Modi with the words, "Vande Mataram." It travels to space alongside handwritten messages from the Skyroot team, investors, policymakers, and well-wishers across the globe, making Mission Aagaman a celebration carried by many hands and shared by millions. (ANI)
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