Mockup of India's human spacecraft (Credit: ISRO)
Bangalore: Astronaut Camp launched
Mangalorean.com
The Astronaut Camp, first-of-its-kind outside the US, was launched in Karnataka by a Pune- based company – – ‘Mission Apollo’. The camp, aimed at developing leadership skills along with environment study, space exploration and honing the personalities of young minds to face greater challenges of tomorrow, began yesterday at Dandelli, about 500 km from here.
GSLV Mark III engine test (Photo: ISRO)
A bit more on India’s planned April 15 test of an indigenous cryogenic upper stage, which is proceeding along with some controversy:
Later this month, if the Indian space agency’s attempt to launch its largest rocket, the GSLV-D3 with an indigenous cryogenic engine succeeds, then India will join the elite club of five nations in the world to have successfully developed such technology.
For the country’s rocket scientists, the yet-to-be-achieved breakthrough is significant on two fronts–one, they will achieve self reliance and confidence in space technology. Two, India will emerge as a serious player in the $4 billion global satellite launch market.
ISRO saw a large leap in its budget as the Indian space agency gears up for human spaceflight.
International Space Station
Space News has some interesting ISS news from Europe:
The head of the 18-nation European Space Agency (ESA) on Feb. 2 roundly endorsed the new direction U.S. President Barack Obama proposed for NASA, saying a firmer U.S. commitment to the international space station and space-based Earth science would further tighten trans-Atlantic cooperation.
In an interview, ESA Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain also said his agency was ready to propose to NASA and the other space station partners — Russia, Japan and Canada — that China, India and South Korea be invited to join the station partnership.
Mockup of India's human spacecraft (Credit: ISRO)
India plans manned space mission in 2016
AFP
India will launch its first manned space mission in 2016 in a bid to match space pioneers such as Russia and the United States, a top official said Wednesday.
The government had already approved plans for a human space flight project by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), and last year gave the go-ahead for funding of around 2.8 billion dollars.
South Korea and India have agreed to deepen their cooperation in a wide range of technological areas, including space:
The KARI-ISRO pact outlines future cooperation in space communication, ways to enhance capabilities of remote control probes and promote growth of space-related sciences.
NewScientist reports of a growing arms race in Asia:
India and China are forging ahead with technology that could be used to kill satellites.
An official from India’s Ministry of Defence announced on 3 January that the country is developing a “kill vehicle” with laser vision that could home in on and destroy satellites in orbit.
India is looking to put more domestically produced instruments on its Chandrayaan-II moon mission. The country’s first lunar spacecraft contained 11 instruments, six of which were supplied by foreign organizations.
Mylswamy Annadurai, Project Director of Chandrayan Mission II, ISRO, on Monday said that there would be more indigenous components in country’s second moon mission….
India wants a space center, too
The Huntsville Times
Huntsville’s U.S. Space & Rocket Center has shown legions of children and adults how space exploration can be used to improve life on Earth, and now India wants to duplicate that inspiration by building its own teaching museum, the nation’s chief diplomat said Monday.
Delhi reaches out to lonely Tehran, may offer ISRO launch for satellite
Indian Express
New Delhi plans to woo Tehran with offers of greater intelligence sharing, revival of defence training and a possible launch of the latter’s satellite but will remain non-committal on the proposed Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline.
