A senior official on Thursday confirmed that ISRO, the Indian Space Research Organisation, is all set to begin a series of tests for India's unmanned space flight mission in February of the upcoming year. The Prime Minister announced the Gaganyaan Mission during the Independence Day Speech in 2018, aiming to achieve it in 2022 when India completes 75 years of Freedom. However, COVID-19 has been the cause of the delay.
ISRO's Human Space Flight Centre Director, R Umamaheshwaran, addressed the Indian Space Congress recently. He added that ISRO scientists have the Environment Control System design ready, which will ensure that the astronauts in the crew service module get ideal living conditions when they are orbiting the Earth. The most critical element of the project is "environment control."
Umamaheshwaran stated that designing the crew module and environment control system was challenging as the system should ensure that the astronauts feel comfortable during the re-entry phase when the temperature reaches over 20000 degrees celsius outside the space capsule. In addition, the crew module, where the astronauts sit and fly, will be completed within six months. He added, "We have to provide oxygen, remove carbon dioxide, remove humidity, maintain temperature, and ensure there is no fire hazard. This is a very complex technology that no country would give us."
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