ISRO Achieves Major Milestone: Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System Ready for Human Spaceflight

India’s ambitious Gaganyaan human spaceflight program has taken a significant leap forward as ISRO announces the successful completion of the Service Module Propulsion System (SMPS) development, marking a crucial step toward the nation’s first crewed mission to space.

Key Highlights

ISRO has finalized the development and qualification testing of the SMPS, a vital component for the Gaganyaan mission’s Orbital Module.

A comprehensive 350-second hot test was conducted at the ISRO Propulsion Complex in Mahendragiri, Tamil Nadu, validating the system’s performance under off-nominal mission scenarios, including abort operations.

The SMPS is a regulated bi-propellant propulsion system designed to handle orbit circularization, on-orbit control, de-boost maneuvers, and service module-based aborts during ascent.

The system features five Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM) engines, each providing 440 Newtons of thrust for main propulsion, and sixteen Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters, each delivering 100 Newtons for precise attitude control.

A System Demonstration Model (SDM) was developed to emulate the fluid circuit, including the propellant tank feed, helium pressurization, and flight-qualified thrusters. The SDM underwent 25 tests, accumulating 14,331 seconds of operation under various mission and human-rating scenarios.

The SMPS was designed and developed by the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) and tested at the ISRO Propulsion Complex.

Mission Impact

This achievement brings India closer to launching its first astronauts into low Earth orbit, with the Gaganyaan mission targeted for the first quarter of 2027.

The successful qualification of the SMPS ensures enhanced crew safety, mission reliability, and readiness for both nominal and emergency scenarios.

Sources: Business Standard, India Today, The Hindu Business Line, ISRO, India TV News