The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully tested a technology that could aid cost-effective recovery of spent rocket stages and safely land payloads on other planets.
The Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerator (IAD) was designed, developed and successfully test-flown by ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) on a Rohini-300 (RH300 Mk II) sounding rocket from the Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station (TERLS) here on Saturday.
"This demonstration opens a gateway for cost-effective spent stage recovery and this technology can also be used in ISRO's future missions to Venus and Mars," ISRO chairman S. Somanath, who was present during the 12.20 p.m. launch, said.