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BENGALURU: The Isro Human Space Flight Centre (HSFC), which is leading the implementation of India’s first human spaceflight mission (Gaganyaan) has a new director, M Mohan, who has taken over ahead of a crucial test mission planned in mid-July or August.
Mohan took charge from Umamaheswaran R, who superannuated on May 31, Isro chairman S Somanath confirmed to TOI. Mohan’s appointment will not change the composition of the Gaganyaan — the first human mission planned by India — team as the project director and other positions continue to remain with the same personnel.
Mohan, from the rocket side, had served as project director Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE), which Isro carried out in 2007 as a precursor to the human spaceflight mission, more than a decade before Prime Minister Modi announced Gaganyaan.
Before becoming director-HSFC, Mohan was associate director at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Isro’s rocket building unit, and before that he was also with liquid propulsion.
Why HSFC is Key
While Gaganyaan is the first of the human spaceflight missions India plans to execute, work for which is happening across Isro centres, including VSSC and URSC, HSFC is spearheading the mission through co-ordinated efforts and focus all the activities that are carried out in other centres, research labs in India, Indian academia and Industries towards accomplishing the mission.
According to Isro, as the lead centre for human space flight activities, HSFC will also be responsible for all future human missions Isro plans. To meet this, it will need to conform to high standards of reliability and human safety in undertaking R&D activities in new technology areas like life support systems, human factors engineering, bioastronautics, crew training and human rating & certification.
“These areas would constitute important components for future sustained human space flight activities like rendezvous and docking, space station building and interplanetary collaborative manned missions to Moon/Mars and near-earth asteroids,” according to Isro.
Upcoming Abort Mission
The change in HSFC comes at a time Isro is looking to carry out the first abort test using the special test vehicle (TV) designed for the purpose.
According to Somanath, while the space agency was looking to conduct the test in mid-July, it may now happen in early August, following which the second test will be done in the later part of the year.
As reported by TOI earlier, the first abort test using TV is expected to see the simulated crew module separate from the vehicle at a height of around 11km (from sea level), attain an altitude of around 15km before falling back to back in the Bay of Bengal.
The mission — TV technology demonstrator-1 (TV-TD1) mission — will be the first of several such tests Isro plans to conduct before the first uncrewed mission under Gaganyaan.
Mohan took charge from Umamaheswaran R, who superannuated on May 31, Isro chairman S Somanath confirmed to TOI. Mohan’s appointment will not change the composition of the Gaganyaan — the first human mission planned by India — team as the project director and other positions continue to remain with the same personnel.
Mohan, from the rocket side, had served as project director Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE), which Isro carried out in 2007 as a precursor to the human spaceflight mission, more than a decade before Prime Minister Modi announced Gaganyaan.
Before becoming director-HSFC, Mohan was associate director at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Isro’s rocket building unit, and before that he was also with liquid propulsion.
Why HSFC is Key
While Gaganyaan is the first of the human spaceflight missions India plans to execute, work for which is happening across Isro centres, including VSSC and URSC, HSFC is spearheading the mission through co-ordinated efforts and focus all the activities that are carried out in other centres, research labs in India, Indian academia and Industries towards accomplishing the mission.
According to Isro, as the lead centre for human space flight activities, HSFC will also be responsible for all future human missions Isro plans. To meet this, it will need to conform to high standards of reliability and human safety in undertaking R&D activities in new technology areas like life support systems, human factors engineering, bioastronautics, crew training and human rating & certification.
“These areas would constitute important components for future sustained human space flight activities like rendezvous and docking, space station building and interplanetary collaborative manned missions to Moon/Mars and near-earth asteroids,” according to Isro.
Upcoming Abort Mission
The change in HSFC comes at a time Isro is looking to carry out the first abort test using the special test vehicle (TV) designed for the purpose.
According to Somanath, while the space agency was looking to conduct the test in mid-July, it may now happen in early August, following which the second test will be done in the later part of the year.
As reported by TOI earlier, the first abort test using TV is expected to see the simulated crew module separate from the vehicle at a height of around 11km (from sea level), attain an altitude of around 15km before falling back to back in the Bay of Bengal.
The mission — TV technology demonstrator-1 (TV-TD1) mission — will be the first of several such tests Isro plans to conduct before the first uncrewed mission under Gaganyaan.
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