Amidst the urban expanse of Chennai, Agnikul Cosmos, a pioneering space venture, triumphantly executed a sub-orbital trial of its in-house crafted 3D-printed semi-cryogenic rocket named Agnibaan. This feat positioned it as the second private enterprise in India to achieve such a milestone.
Following four unsuccessful endeavors, the trial conducted on Thursday unfolded devoid of any live-streaming spectacle, witnessed by a limited number of dignitaries at the Sriharikota launch facility nestled within the precincts of ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre.
In acknowledgment of this achievement, ISRO took to X to extend felicitations to Agnikul Cosmos for the momentous launch of the Agnibaan SoRTed-01 mission from their launch pad, hailing it as a significant advancement, marking the maiden controlled flight of a semi-cryogenic liquid engine fabricated through additive manufacturing.
Pawan Goenka, Chairman of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), expressed exuberance over the successful launch of Agnibaan SOrTeD by @AgnikulCosmos, deeming it a historic juncture for India’s space domain. He lauded the deployment of the world’s premier single-piece 3D printed semi-cryogenic engine as a testament to the ingenuity of the nation’s youthful innovators.
This milestone marked the fifth attempt by Agnikul to propel the Agnibaan Sub-Orbital Technology Demonstrator (SOrTeD) since March 22.
In a testament to the burgeoning prowess of India’s private space sector, Lt Gen A K Bhatt (retd), Director General of the Indian Space Association (ISpA), hailed the achievement as a monumental boost, extending heartfelt congratulations to the entire team and bestowing well wishes for their future endeavors.
Agnibaan stands as a versatile two-stage launch apparatus capable of ferrying payloads of up to 300 kg to an orbit of approximately 700 km, as per the company’s assertions. It harnesses a semi-cryogenic engine employing a blend of liquid and gaseous propellants, a technological domain yet to be explored by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in its rocketry pursuits.
The SOrTeD mission entails a single-stage launch vehicle demonstration propelled by a semi-cryogenic engine, christened the Agnilet, a sub-cooled liquid oxygen-based propulsion mechanism developed domestically. The startup has equipped the vehicle with an avant-garde ethernet-based avionics structure and entirely indigenous autopilot software.
Fueled by sub-cooled Liquid Oxygen (LOX) and Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), the vehicle features four carbon composite fins for passive control. The Agnilet engine represents a pioneering endeavor, being the world’s inaugural single-piece 3D-printed semi-cryogenic rocket engine.
The mission’s duration is anticipated to surpass two minutes from liftoff to splashdown. Post-launch, the vehicle is slated to execute a pitch-over maneuver around four seconds into the flight, orchestrating a controlled rotation to alter its orientation from vertical to a predefined angle relative to the ground or flight trajectory.
Subsequently, at just over 39 seconds post-launch, the vehicle is poised to engage in wind-biasing maneuver, a tactical maneuver incorporated in rocketry to counteract the effects of wind on the rocket’s ascent trajectory. By 1 minute and 29 seconds, the launch vehicle is projected to attain apogee, the zenith of its trajectory, before culminating in splashdown just over two minutes post-launch, thereby concluding the mission.
