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Nasa, Isro may partner again after Nisar: Nasa EO director
Nasa, Isro may partner again after Nisar: Nasa EO director

Time of India

time3 hours ago

  • Science
  • Time of India

Nasa, Isro may partner again after Nisar: Nasa EO director

BENGALURU: Following the $1.5 billion Nasa- Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar) mission, Nasa and Isro could soon start discussing areas of common interest for another joint mission although there's nothing concrete decided at this juncture. Karen St Germain, Director of Earth Science, Nasa headquarters, answering a question on whether there would be a follow-up mission, said late on Monday: '…We have been so focussed on getting Nisar completed and into orbit and extracting the incredible science and applications from the mission that we don't have a mission lined up at the moment. But I assume we will start talking about common interests on our next mission in the near future. ' Nasa hinting at a possibility of another joint mission points to a growing alignment between the two space agencies not just in human spaceflight or lunar exploration but also in Earth observation and climate monitoring — areas where both countries see strategic and scientific value. You Can Also Check: Bengaluru AQI | Weather in Bengaluru | Bank Holidays in Bengaluru | Public Holidays in Bengaluru Powerful team With Nisar fully ready for launch — lift off is scheduled for 5.40pm Wednesday aboard GSLV-F16 — Nasa and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) officials reflected on the nearly decade-long collaboration that has brought Indian and American engineers into close quarters. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Live Comfortably: 60m2 prefabricated bungalow for the elderly in Sumber Rejo Pre Fabricated Homes | Search Ads Search Now Undo 'We've worked this intimately where they [Isro teams] spent years at our facility and we spent years at theirs,' Phil Barela, Nisar project manager from JPL, said, describing the partnership as deeply integrated. He noted that while the two agencies often approached problems differently, the teams stayed open-minded and eventually developed a strong working rhythm. 'It is an extremely powerful team at this point and not something we'd trade for the world,' Barela added. Karen, while recognising the leadership of Isro and JPL team, said building a satellite on opposite sides of the world during a global pandemic was really hard, but it strengthened the relationship with Isro. 'The collaboration, the cooperation, information sharing, and, frankly, joint learning between our two agencies is a foundation that we look forward to continuing to build upon,' Karen said. Barela added that during the height of Covid, about 65 Isro engineers visited JPL and worked to keep the integration and tests going. '...And over the last two-and-a-half years, Nasa has sent out over 175 engineers to Isro's facilities to keep the integration and tests going and get us ready for where we stand today and ready for launch.' Isro cost model different Financially, Nasa has invested about $1.2 billion over the primary life of the mission. However, Karen refrained from comparing costs directly with Isro, saying the Indian agency follows a different accounting model. '...So it's really difficult to draw comparisons based on money alone,' Karen noted. Instead, she highlighted the equitable hardware and operations contributions from both sides. Nasa developed the L-band radar system and related subsystems, while Isro built the spacecraft bus, S-band radar, solar arrays, and is handling launch and mission operations. A standout component of the spacecraft is the nearly 40-foot deployable antenna and boom, an engineering feat integrated across teams. 'This is a completely joint and integrated mission,' Karen said, emphasising that Nisar reflects a level of collaboration that is rare in large-scale satellite missions.

Nisar GSLV-F16 mission: When and how to watch joint Nasa-Isro mission launch
Nisar GSLV-F16 mission: When and how to watch joint Nasa-Isro mission launch

India Today

time8 hours ago

  • Science
  • India Today

Nisar GSLV-F16 mission: When and how to watch joint Nasa-Isro mission launch

The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is all set to launch the ambitious Nasa Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar) Mission to over a period of nearly 10 years, the $1.5 billion mission is one of the most expensive developed jointly by the two space agencies. Nisar mission's primary objectives are to study land & ice deformation, land ecosystems, and oceanic regions in areas of common interest to the US and Indian science S-band radar system, data handling system, high-speed downlink system, the spacecraft, and the launch vehicle have been developed by Isro. Nasa has contributed the L-band radar system, an additional high-speed downlink system, a solid-state recorder, a GPS receiver, and a 9-meter boom that supports the 12-meter radar reflector. Isro is responsible for satellite commanding and operations, while Nasa will provide the orbit manoeuvre plan and the radar operations WILL NISAR LAUNCH?The Nisar mission will lift-off aboard Isro's Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle-Mk II (GSLV-Mk II) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in launch is scheduled for July 30 at 5:40 pm the lift-off the satellite will be deployed into space aftere 18 minutes of flight. Nasa has contributed the L-band radar system, an additional high-speed downlink system. (Photo: Nasa) The unique dual-band SAR employs advanced, novel SweepSAR technique, which provides high resolution and large swath imagery. NISAR will image the global land and ice-covered surfaces, including islands, sea-ice and selected oceans every 12 TO WATCH NISAR LAUNCH?India Today Science will bring you all the updates of the launch LIVE from Indian space agency, Isro, and the American space agency Nasa will live stream the launch. You can watch it here. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER DEPLOYMENT? The NISAR mission will progress through four key phases: Launch, Deployment, Commissioning, and Science is scheduled to launch aboard the GSLV-F16 rocket on July 30, 2025, from Isro's Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. The Nisar mission will lift-off aboard Isro's Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle-Mk II. (Photo: Isro) In the Deployment Phase, a 12-meter reflector will be extended 9 meters from the satellite using a complex boom designed by Nasa/JPL. The 90-day Commissioning Phase involves system checks, calibrations, and instrument Science Operations Phase will continue until the mission ends, featuring regular orbit maneuvers, instrument observations, and joint Isro-JPL coordination for calibration, validation, and science data collection.- EndsMust Watch

Countdown begins for NISAR – NASA ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar Mission
Countdown begins for NISAR – NASA ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar Mission

Time of India

time10 hours ago

  • Science
  • Time of India

Countdown begins for NISAR – NASA ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar Mission

NISAR is the first of its kind mission, jointly developed by Isro and NASA. CHENNAI: A 27.5-hour countdown for GSLV F-16/ Nisar- Nasa Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar- Mission commenced at 2.40pm on Tuesday. The launch is scheduled for 5.40pm on Wednesday at Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. NISAR is the first of its kind mission, jointly developed by Isro and NASA. It will have an L and S-band, global, microwave imaging mission, with capability to acquire fully polarimetric and interferometric data. The unique dual-band Synthetic Aperture Radar of NISAR employs advanced, novel SweepSAR technique, which provides high resolution and large swath imagery. NISAR will image the global land and ice-covered surfaces, including islands, sea-ice and selected oceans every 12 days. NISAR mission's primary objectives are to study land & ice deformation, land ecosystems, and oceanic regions in areas of common interest to the US and Indian science communities.

Nisar mission: Once a denier of cryogenic tech, Nasa is now an Isro customer
Nisar mission: Once a denier of cryogenic tech, Nasa is now an Isro customer

India Today

time14 hours ago

  • Science
  • India Today

Nisar mission: Once a denier of cryogenic tech, Nasa is now an Isro customer

On July 30, 2025, the Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar) satellite is set to lift off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota aboard India's GSLV rocket, powered by an indigenous cryogenic is the world's single most expensive civilian Earth imaging satellite. A collaboration between Nasa and Isro, the mission represents a major technological achievement and an even more significant geopolitical three decades ago, the United States actively blocked India's access to cryogenic engine technology. Sanctions were imposed, diplomatic pressure was applied, and international agreements were disrupted, all to keep India out of the elite club of space-faring nations. A LOOK BACK INTO PAST It began in the early 1990s, a time when India's space programme was steadily gaining ground. By then, Isro had developed the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), a dependable rocket that could carry satellites weighing up to 1,750 kilograms into low Earth orbit (LEO) at altitudes of around 600–800 it had a crucial limitation: it could not lift heavier payloads into geostationary orbit (GEO), located about 36,000 kilometres above the Earth's surface. This is the orbit where most communication, weather, and broadcasting satellites reach that altitude with payloads typically weighing 2,000 to 2,500 kilograms or more, India needed a more powerful rocket and, more importantly, a more advanced needed a cryogenic engine. Nisar satellite. (Photo: Nasa) But cryogenic engines are extremely complex. Liquid hydrogen, the main fuel, must be stored at –253C, and liquid oxygen at –183C. Keeping these volatile substances stable inside a rocket, and then igniting them, demands precision ultra-low temperatures can cause metal components to crack, valves to seize, and seals to fail. Most importantly, the entire system must function flawlessly under immense pressure and temperature during launch.A LIKELY DEPENDENCYIn the early 1990s, India did not possess this technology. Without it, India remained dependent on foreign rockets for critical space missions. To gain full independence in space, Isro had two options: develop the technology in-house or acquire it from abroad. Given the complexity and urgency, India first sought to acquire the time, only a handful of countries, the United States, Russia, France, and Japan, had cryogenic was approached first, but negotiations failed to progress. Offers came from the United States and Europe. General Dynamics, an American firm, proposed a deal, as did Europe's Arianespace. The cryogenic engine developed by Isro. (Photo: Isro) However, both offers were expensive and included restrictive clauses that ruled out any transfer of technology. For India, which saw technology transfer as vital for long-term self-reliance, these deals offered little came a breakthrough. In January 1991, Isro signed a historic agreement with Russia's Glavkosmos to procure two cryogenic engines along with full technology transfer, for a relatively modest $200 million. The engines on offer, the RD-56 or KVD-1, had originally been developed for the Soviet manned moon that opportunity soon came under FOLLOWEDAs the Cold War ended and Russia turned toward the West for economic support, the United States began exerting diplomatic pressure. Under the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the United States claimed the engine transfer could aid missile development. In 1992, it imposed sanctions on both Isro and Glavkosmos, effectively blocking the its place came a heavily revised arrangement. It allowed the delivery of seven fully assembled engines, but with no accompanying blueprints, training, or transfer of technology. Adding to the humiliation, the agreement included a clause restricting India from using the engines only for peaceful purposes and prohibited any modification or re-export without Russian irony was hard to ignore: this was the same technology the United States had earlier offered India, without objections, and at a much higher imported engines powered the early flights of the GSLV programme. But even as India used them, then Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao recognised the strategic vulnerability of relying on foreign technology. In April 1994, the government launched an indigenous cryogenic engine development programme with an initial budget of 300 crore. The decision would lay the foundation for India's future self-reliance in heavy-lift the formal restrictions, cooperation between Russian and Indian scientists did not completely end. Many within Glavkosmos had developed deep respect for Isro engineers and discreetly supported their components and technical inputs were quietly sent to India, sometimes through covert means. Ural Airlines, a Russian carrier, agreed to transport equipment discreetly in exchange for extra compensation. Many sources state that Nambi Narayanan, who headed Isro's cryogenic programme at the time, later confirmed that he personally accompanied some of these these backchannel efforts were India pushed ahead with its indigenous programme, the United States appeared to shift tactics—from diplomatic pressure to disruption. In late 1994, Nambi Narayanan and his colleague Sasi Kumaran were suddenly arrested on false charges of espionage. They were accused of leaking confidential cryogenic engine data to Pakistan through two Maldivian women, whom Nambi Narayanan had never case shocked the scientific community and the Narayanan was subjected to brutal interrogation and intense media scrutiny. The cryogenic project came to a standstill. Eventually, the case was handed over to the CBI, which found no evidence of wrongdoing. Nambi was acquitted, and years later, on September 14, 2018, the Supreme Court acknowledged the injustice he had scars of the espionage case did not stop AND STEADYProgress was slow and often marked by failure. Multiple test flights of the GSLV in the early 2000s faced setbacks. Engines underperformed, missions failed mid-flight, and questions were raised about whether India had taken on more than it could handle. And western media was in full glee at our breakthrough came on January 5, 2014, when Isro successfully launched the GSLV-D5 mission using a 100% indigenous cryogenic marked a turning point, not just for Isro, but for India's standing in the global space community. Since then, India has routinely used the GSLV for placing heavy satellites in orbit and has become a trusted launch partner for other same cryogenic engine that the world once refused to share has now become a symbol of India's resilience. And in a fitting turn of history, it is now all set to carry an American satellite into space. The deniers are now our customers.(This is an authored article by Srijan Pal Singh. He is an author and an IIM Ahmedabad graduate, who was the Advisor for Policy and Technology to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, 11th President of India.)- EndsMust Watch

TOI explains: How Nisar was built - why it'll take 90 days before any data comes in
TOI explains: How Nisar was built - why it'll take 90 days before any data comes in

Time of India

timea day ago

  • Science
  • Time of India

TOI explains: How Nisar was built - why it'll take 90 days before any data comes in

TOI explains: How Nisar was built & why it'll take 90 days before any data comes in NEW DELHI: The India-US Earth observation satellite, Nasa-Isro Synthetic Aperture Radar (Nisar), is set for launch on July 30 from Isro's spaceport in Sriharikota aboard the GSLV-F16 rocket. But the mission's real work begins after it enters orbit. Over the next several weeks, the satellite will go through a carefully sequenced set of actions before it starts sending data. In all, Nisar will need at least 90 days to enter its 'science phase'. How Nisar was built Before we get to what happens after launch, here's how the satellite came together: Nisar is the result of nearly a decade of collaboration between Isro and Nasa. Over 8–10 years, both agencies separately developed and tested key systems, which were then brought together into one observatory. The core radar payload was built in parts — Isro developed the S-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) built the L-band SAR. These were integrated into a shared structure called the Integrated Radar Instrument Structure (IRIS). Assembly of IRIS and other payload elements took place at JPL. The structure was then shipped to Isro, which had in parallel developed the satellite's mainframe at the UR Rao Satellite Centre (URSC) in Bengaluru. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Brother Donates Kidney To Save Sister's Life. One Year Later, He Says, I Wish I Never Did It, When This Happens Daily Sport X Undo Isro then carried out the final assembly, integration and testing of the complete satellite. And now that the satellite is ready for launch, let's look at what will happen in the starting Wednesday: Phase 1: Launch At 5.40pm on Wednesday (July 30), the GSLV-F16 rocket will place the 2.8-tonne satellite into a Sun-synchronous polar orbit. This means the satellite will pass over the same part of Earth at roughly the same local solar time every day — ideal for tracking changes on the surface. Phase 2: Deployment (Post-launch Days 10-18) Nisar carries a massive 12-metre-wide mesh reflector, which acts as a radar antenna. Since it is too large to launch fully open, it will be folded and stowed during launch and then deployed in space using a complex multistage boom system. The process begins on the 10th day from launch — 'Mission Day 10' which becomes 'Deploy Day 1'. Here's how the deployment unfolds: On Deploy Day 1 (DD-1), engineers initiate pre-deployment checks and unlock six 'launch restraints' that keep the system secure during launch. Two more restraints are released, and the first hinge (called the 'wrist hinge') is activated on DD-2. This starts the unfolding motion of the boom. On DD-3, the shoulder hinge is extended, swinging the boom further outward and on DD-4, the elbow hinge opens, continuing the arm-like movement. The root hinge is deployed on DD-5, bringing the boom to full extension, and on DD-6, a pause is built into the schedule to allow for analysis and verification of earlier steps. And, DD-7 will be a buffer or 'margin' day in case any delays or issues need to be addressed. Once this is through, on DD-8, the satellite performs a 'yaw manoeuvre' (rotation) to correctly orient itself, and then finally opens the circular radar reflector. This slow, deliberate sequence ensures the delicate boom and antenna unfold without damage or misalignment, and paves the way for the next phase. Phase 3: Commissioning After deployment and until the 90th day from launch, all systems are checked and calibrated. This includes the satellite's mainframe, radar electronics, and onboard instruments developed by both Isro and JPL. Phase 4: Science Ops Once fully operational, Nisar will begin capturing data across both L-band and S-band frequencies. The satellite will observe ground movement, ice sheets, forests and land use — feeding data to researchers worldwide. Regular manoeuvres will keep it in position, and a pre-coordinated observation plan will guide its workload until the end of its mission life.

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