RLV Technology Demonstration Programme

Reusable Launch Vehicle–Technology Demonstration Programme is a series of technology demonstration missions that has been conceived by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) as a first step towards realising a Two Stage To Orbit (TSTO) re-usable launch vehicle, in which the second stage is a spaceplane.^[3]

RLV Technology Demonstration Programme

Technology Development Vehicle (TDV) for RLV Programme
Program overview
Country	India
Organization	ISRO
Programme history
Duration	2012–present^[1]
First flight	01:30 UTC, 23 May 2016 ^[2]
Last flight	March 2024
Successes	2
Launch site(s)	Satish Dhawan Space Centre Chitradurga Aeronautical Test Range (Landing)
Vehicle information
Launch vehicle(s)	GSLV Mk II

For this purpose, a winged reusable launch vehicle technology demonstrator (RLV-TD) has been configured. The RLV-TD acted as a flying test bed to evaluate various technologies like powered cruise flight, hypersonic flight, and autonomous landing using air-breathing propulsion. Application of these technologies would bring down the launch cost by a factor of 10.^[4] This project has no connection with the Avatar spaceplane concept by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation.^[5]

History

In 2006 the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) performed a series of ground tests to demonstrate stable supersonic combustion for nearly 7 seconds with an inlet Mach number of 6.^[6]

In March 2010, ISRO conducted the flight testing of its new sounding rocket: Advanced Technology Vehicle (ATV-D01), weighing 3 tonnes at lift-off, a diameter of .56 m (1 ft 10 in), and a length of ~10 m (33 ft).^[7] It carried a passive scramjet engine combustor module as a test-bed for demonstration of air-breathing propulsion technology.^[8]

In January 2012, ISRO announced that a scaled prototype, called Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD), was approved to be built and tested.^[9] The aerodynamics characterization on the RLV-TD prototype was done by National Aerospace Laboratories in India. The RLV-TD is in the last stages of construction by a Hyderabad-based private company called CIM Technologies.

By May 2015, engineers at the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) in Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station were installing thermal tiles on the outer surface of the RLV-TD to protect it against the intense heat during atmospheric reentry.^[10] This prototype weighs around 1.5 tonnes and flew to an altitude of 65 km^[10] mounted on top of an expendable solid booster HS9.^[11][12]

On August 28, 2016, ISRO successfully tested its scramjet engine on second developmental flight of its Advanced Technology Vehicle ATV-D02 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre for 28 August 2016.^[13][14] The scramjet engine will be integrated to the RLV at a later stage of development.^[15]

Pushpak (RLV-TD)

 

RLV-TD HEX01

Pushpak^[16] (also known as, RLV-TD or Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstrator is India's first uncrewed flying testbed developed for the ISRO's RLV Technology Demonstration Programme started in 2012. It is a scaled down prototype of an eventual two-stage-to-orbit (TSTO) reusable launch vehicle.

In January 2012, the design of ISRO's reusable launch vehicle was approved by the "National Review Committee" and clearance was granted to build the vehicle. The vehicle was named "Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator" (RLV-TD).^[17] ISRO aims to bring down the cost of payload delivery to low Earth orbit by 80% from existing $20,000/kg to $4,000/kg.^[18][19][20]

The RLV-TD was developed with an objective to test various aspects such as hypersonic flight, autoland, powered cruise flight, hypersonic flight using the air-breathing engine propulsion and "Hypersonic Experiment". A series of four RLV-TD test flights are planned by ISRO:^[17][21][22] HEX (Hypersonic Flight Experiment), LEX (Landing Experiment), REX (Return Flight Experiment), and SPEX (Scramjet Propulsion Experiment).

A team of 750 engineers at Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, National Aeronautical Laboratory, and Indian Institute of Science worked on the design and development of RLV-TD and the associated rocket. RLV-TD underwent 120 hours of wind tunnel, 5,000 hours of computational fluid dynamics and 1,100 runs of flight simulation tests. RLV-TD has mass of 1.75 tonnes, wingspan of 3.6 meters and overall length of 6.5 meters (excluding the rocket). The vehicle had 600 heat-resistant tiles on its undercarriage and it features delta wings and angled tail fins.^[23][24] Total cost of the project was ₹95 crore (equivalent to ₹137 crore or US$17.1 million in 2023).^[25][26] Future planned developments include testing an air-breathing propulsion system, which aims to capitalise on the oxygen in the atmosphere instead of liquefied oxygen while in flight.^[27]

Engines

In January 2006, ISRO completed the design, development and tests of Scramjet (supersonic ramjet) at its Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre in Thiruvananthapuram. During the ground tests, stable supersonic combustion with an inlet Mach number 6 was demonstrated for 7 seconds.

On 3 March 2010, ISRO successfully conducted the flight test of its new sounding rocket ATV-D01 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. ATV-D01 weighed 3 tonnes at lift-off and was the heaviest sounding rocket ever developed by ISRO at the time. It was mounted with a passive Scramjet engine. The rocket flew for 7 seconds, achieved Mach number 6 + 0.5 and dynamic pressure 80 + 35 kPa.^[28][29]

RLV TD Experiments

Hypersonic Flight Experiment

For Japan's Hypersonic Flight Experiment, see HYFLEX.

The Reusable Launch Vehicle Hypersonic Flight Experiment or RLV HEX was the first test flight in the RLV Technology Demonstration Programme. HEX was successfully conducted on 23 May 2016.^[2][30][31] RLV-TD consists of a fuselage (body), a nose cap, double delta wings and twin vertical rudders. It has active control surfaces called Elevons and Rudders.^[31] Apart from the twin rudders it is similar in shape and operation to a small Space Shuttle Orbiter. TDV uses 600 or so heat resistant silica tiles and Flexible External Insulation, nose-cap is made out Carbon-Carbon composite with SiC coating. The leading edges of twin rudders are Inconel-718, wing leading edges of 15CDV6.^{[32][33][34][35][36][37]}

HEX was the first test flight of a reusable launch vehicle developed by India. The test flight objectives included:^[38]

• Validating the aerodynamic design characteristics during hypersonic flight
• Characterize induced loads during the hypersonic descent through the atmosphere
• Assess the performance of the carbon fibre used in construction of the nose of the vehicle
• Demonstrate first stage separation sequencing

The vehicle was tracked during its flight from ground stations at Sriharikota and a shipborne terminal. The total flight duration from launch to splashdown lasted about 773.6 seconds.^[39] The unit was not planned to be recovered.^[40][41] ISRO plans to construct an airstrip greater than 4km long in Sriharikota island in the "near future". Critical technologies such as autonomous navigation, guidance & control, reusable thermal protection system, and descent mission management were validated in this flight.^[42]

Landing Experiment

The Reusable Launch Vehicle Landing Experiment or RLV-LEX was the second test flight in the RLV Technology Demonstration Programme following the Hypersonic Flight Experiment. The demonstration trials will pave the way for the two-stage-to-orbit (TSTO) fully reusable launch vehicle. Furthermore, more test similar to RLV-LEX will be conducted to test other conditions like wind, different failure conditions and other factors to finalise the testing of the vehicle.^[43]

RLV-LEX-01

RLV-LEX was successfully conducted on 2 April 2023 at the Chitradurga Aeronautical Test Range.^[44] The flight took off at 7:10 AM and was released mid-air at a downrange of 4.6 km. The Vehicle landed at about 7:40 AM

The test flight objectives included:^[45]

• Simulating the exact conditions of a Space Re-entry vehicle's landing - high speed, unmanned, autonomous, precise landing from the same return path
• Validating the landing parameters such as the ground relative velocity, the sinking rate of landing gears and precise body rates as might be experienced by an orbital re-entry space vehicle on its return path

The Test Vehicle was dropped from an Indian Air Force Boeing CH-47 Chinook Heavy-Lift Helicopter after being carried as an underslung payload.

After the successful completion of the mission, S. Somanath, chairman of ISRO, said to the media that they are currently planning to conduct more such landing tests to check the readiness of software and hardware under different conditions. The reported test will include the vehicle being dropped from an altitude of about 4.5 kilometres and at a lateral difference following which the vehicle must automatically guide itself for a landing.^[46] The test will now be retroactively referred to as RLV-LEX-01

RLV-LEX-02

Autonomous precision landing after being released from an off-nominal position.

Another landing experiment was conducted at Chitradurga Aeronautical Test Range on 22 March 2024.^[47] Four kilometres from the runway, at a height of 4.5 km, the Boeing CH-47 Chinook of Indian Air Force hoisted and released the test vehicle. The vehicle had to correct both cross-range and down-range deviations before landing autonomously on the runway due to the experiment's more difficult manoeuvres and dispersions.^[48] The vehicle used its nosewheel steering system, landing gear brakes, and drogue parachute to help it come to a precise halt on the runway after making the required cross-range modifications. RLV-LEX-02 made use of the same Flight Demonstrator Vehicle as RLV-LEX-01. Liquid Propulsion System Centre (LPSC), ISRO Inertial Systems Unit (IISU), Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, and the Indian Air Force worked together with the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Aerial Delivery Research and Development Establishment (ADRDE), and other agencies to complete the mission.^[49][50]

Future

Two more experiments are planned by ISRO: OREX (Orbital Return Flight Experiment) and SPEX (Scramjet Propulsion Experiment).^[10][51][52] The OREX will launch on a GSLV mk.II rocket and renter the earth's atmosphere for a landing to demonstrate the viability of the project.

Gallery

Photos of RLV TD

•  
  RLV-TD HEX01, TDV being transported
•  
  RLV-TD HEX01 at First Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota (SDSC SHAR) before launch 01
•  
  Launch of RLV-TD HEX01 from First Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota (SDSC SHAR) 02

See also

• Avatar, an unrelated spaceplane concept by India's DRDO
• Space Rider a planned robotic spaceplane by ESA

References

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External links

• Home page for RLV-TD at ISRO
• RLV-TD test flight animation at YouTube