The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) conducted a successful autonomous test landing of a reusable RLV LEX launch vehicle on Sunday. According to available data, the landing of the carrier was carried out at a test airfield near the city of Chitradurga, Karnataka. A message about this appeared on the official website of the department.
Image Source: ISRO
As part of the test, the RLV missile was secured as a suspended load on an Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter. After that, the helicopter climbed to a height of 4.5 km. When the desired height was reached, the rocket disconnected and automatically performed landing maneuvers, relying on navigation, guidance and control systems. The RLV eventually made a soft landing on the runway using a parachute-based braking system.
“For the first time in the world, a winged body was lifted by a helicopter to a height of 4.5 km and released for an autonomous landing on the runway. The RLV is essentially a spacecraft with a low lift-to-drag coefficient, requiring a landing approach with large glide angles, due to which the landing begins at a speed of 350 km / h, ”ISRO said in a statement. It is also noted that the experiment was carried out in compliance with the exact landing conditions of the space return vehicle, as if the RLV had returned from a space flight.
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