ISRO comes out with Manned Mission plan

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) confirmed to have chalked out plan for India’s manned mission lined up for 2015 on Friday.

Chairman of ISRO, Dr D G Madhavan Nair told media persons, “We have now finalised the project report on the manned mission. The report is going to the Government. The Government will have to review and take a decision soon.”

He said that the report will be submitted to Space Commission by next week, which will give its recommendation on the total cost of project.

Dr Nair further explained the stratagem and said that the organisation has now clarity in the framework they have reached upon finally, he also discussed about the technologies to be assessed, facilities to be established and the agencies to involve in this project.

This report is another indication of India’s preparedness to undertake the manned mission and through its various satellites India has proved that it has the maturity to go ahead with the plan.

ISRO has also surveyed since 2003 to scrutinise the technological challenges of a manned spaceflight, some of the facilities required are available in the country however many areas have to be developed to give a thrust to the mission. Earlier, preliminary cost has been pegged at Rs 10,000 crore by ISRO, spread over a period of 8 years.

This indigenous manned space exploration is planned for 2014-15 and ISRO has already setup a Deep Space Network in Byalalu village near Bangalore. Indian Deep Space Network comprises primarily of two powerful dish antennas measuring 32-metre and 18-metre diameter to track all its future space missions. A third antenna measuring 11-meter diameter will be also erected for ASTROSAT mission.

India is also set to enter the moon exploration club by sending its first mission to the Moon, Chandrayaan-1 by July 2008.If the mission goes as planned, ISRO would be the sixth space agency in the world, after the Soviet Union, NASA, Japan, European Space Agency and China.

India has evolved as a prominent nation in the field of space sciences and this manned mission to come up will boost the morale of our nation.