Space startup Agnikul Cosmos successfully launched Agnibaan SORTED-01, ISRO congratulated

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) said on Thursday that space startup Agnikul Cosmos has successfully launched the Agnibaan (Subrobital Tech Demonstrator) SORTED-01 mission from its launch pad in Sriharikota. ISRO termed the launch as 'a major milestone' and also congratulated Agnikul Cosmos for this achievement.

The Prime Minister said, “Congratulations to Agnikul Cosmos for the successful launch of the Agnibaan SOrTeD-01 mission from the launch pad. This engine test is powered by Agnikul’s own data acquisition systems and flight computers, which were designed 100 percent in-house. Further, this test also proves the capability of the entire avionics chain of the SOrTeD vehicle to control the entire propulsion system of the vehicle. Capable of carrying up to 300 kg to orbits around 700 km high, Agnibaan can reach both low and high-inclination orbits and is fully mobile. It is designed to access more than 10 launch ports.

Agnibaan is customer-configurable and runs on LOX/Kerosene engines at all stages. In the first stage, the number of engines will depend on the mission, satellite, and launch port. Agnikul Cosmos, the only private launchpad in India, is located within the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC SHAR), in Sriharikota. Union Minister Rajiv Chandrashekhar congratulated Agnikul Cosmos on a job well done on its first launch. Well done.

In a spectacular display of valor in the year 2023, India scaled new heights with the successful soft landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the south pole of the Moon and the successful launch of India's first solar mission Aditya-L1. These milestones not only secured India's position in the global space economy but also fuelled the engines for the private space sector in India. India now aims to establish the 'Indian Space Station' by 2035 and send the first Indian to the Moon by 2040.