Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced that its upcoming mission, Chandrayaan-4, which aims to bring back samples from the Moon, will be launched in parts and assembled in space.
This innovative approach, disclosed by ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Wednesday, marks a first in space exploration history.
Chandrayaan-4, expected to surpass the carrying capacity of ISRO's most powerful rockets, will necessitate multiple launches. The spacecraft will be assembled in orbit before commencing its journey to the Moon, Somanath revealed on the sidelines of an event in Delhi.
“We have worked out the configuration of Chandrayaan-4… how to bring back samples from the Moon to Earth. We propose to do it with multiple launches because our current rocket capability is not (strong) enough to do it at one go,” said Somanath.
To achieve this, ISRO will develop docking capabilities for joining different parts of the spacecraft both in Earth orbit and lunar orbit. This technique, while routine for docking modules during the return journey from the Moon, will be a pioneering effort for spacecraft assembly.
Docking involves the landing part of the spacecraft detaching from the main body to land on the Moon, while the other part remains in orbit. Upon completing its mission on the lunar surface, the landing module docks with the orbiting part, merging into a single unit for the return to Earth.
Somanath also mentioned an upcoming mission called Spadex, scheduled for later this year, which will demonstrate this docking capability. “So, we have to have docking capability (joining of different parts of a spacecraft) in space — both in Earth space as well as in Moon space. We are developing that capability,” he stated.
The assembly-in-space approach for Chandrayaan-4 aligns with the methods used in constructing the International Space Station and similar facilities, which were built by launching and assembling different parts in orbit.
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