(Madras) L’Inde a lancé vendredi avec succès sa première fusée privée, ce qui constitue une étape importante pour ce pays qui entend devenir une puissance spatiale de premier plan.
La fusée Vikram-S d’une demi-tonne a décollé avant 12 h (2 h HNE), avant de réaliser une trajectoire en arc de cercle, comme l’ont montré les images de l’Organisation indienne pour la recherche spatiale (ISRO).
Six minutes plus tard, elle s’est abîmée en toute sécurité en mer, selon l’agence.
Cette fusée a atteint une altitude de 90 km d’altitude, soit au-dessous de la ligne de Karman qui marque la frontière de l’espace selon la convention internationale.
« C’est en effet un nouveau départ, une nouvelle aube […] India’s space project,” Indian Science Minister Jitendra Singh said after the launch to cheering technicians at ISRO’s launch site on Sriharikota Island, India. State of Andhra Pradesh.
The single-stage rocket, powered by solid propellant, was developed by the Indian company Skyroot Aerospace.
It was built with “composite carbon structures and 3D printed components,” the government said in a statement on Thursday.
India has boosted its space program in recent years, planning a manned mission with support from Russia and France scheduled for 2023 or 2024.
In 2019, Mr Modi welcomed India joining the club of “space superpowers” after shooting down a satellite in low orbit with a missile. But his country had drawn criticism because of the quantities of “space waste” thus generated.
This Asian giant is striving to increase its share of the global commercial space market, which currently stands at 2%.
In October, ISRO’s heaviest rocket successfully placed 36 broadband satellites into low orbit.
According to experts, India manages to keep costs low by replicating and adapting existing space technology for its own purposes, not least thanks to its large number of highly skilled engineers who are paid far less than their foreign counterparts.