Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle
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The Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle or Advanced Satellite Launch Vehicle (also known as ASLV) was a small-lift launch vehicle five-stage
solid-fuel rocket A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses Rocket propellant#Solid chemical propellants, solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder. The incepti ...
developed by the
Indian Space Research Organisation The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO ) is India's national List of government space agencies, space agency, headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka. It serves as the principal research and development arm of the Department of Space (DoS), ...
(ISRO) to place 150 kg satellites into LEO. This project was started by India during the early 1980s to develop technologies needed for a payload to be placed into a
geostationary orbit A geostationary orbit, also referred to as a geosynchronous equatorial orbit''Geostationary orbit'' and ''Geosynchronous (equatorial) orbit'' are used somewhat interchangeably in sources. (GEO), is a circular orbit, circular geosynchronous or ...
. Its design was based on Satellite Launch Vehicle. ISRO did not have sufficient funds for both the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle programme and the ASLV programme at the same time and the ASLV programme was terminated after the initial developmental flights. The payloads of ASLV were Stretched Rohini Satellites.


Vehicle

The ASLV was a five-stage vehicle. Two strap-on boosters acted as a first stage, with the core stage igniting after booster burn out. The payload capacity of the ASLV was approximately to an orbit of with a 47-degree inclination. At liftoff, the ASLV generated of thrust. It was a rocket, measuring in length with a core diameter of . The height to diameter ratio of ASLV was very large which resulted in the vehicle being unstable in flight. This was compounded by the fact that many of the critical events during a launch like the core ignition and the booster separation happened at the Tropopause where the dynamic loads on the launcher was at the maximum. The aerodynamic characterization research was conducted at the National Aerospace Laboratories' 1.2m Trisonic Wind Tunnel Facility.


History

The ASLV made four launches, of which one was successful, two failed to achieve orbit, and a third achieved a lower than planned orbit which decayed quickly. The type made its maiden flight on 24 March 1987, and its final flight on 4 May 1994.


Launch history

All four ASLV launches occurred from the ASLV Launch Pad at the Sriharikota Range. For vertically integrated ASLV, many SLV-3 ground facilities were reused but a new launch pad with retractable Mobile Service Structure was constructed within the same launch complex.


Launch statistics

;Decade-wise summary of ASLV launches:


See also

* Comparison of orbital launchers families


References

{{Use Indian English, date=January 2014 Space programme of India Satish Dhawan Space Centre ISRO space launch vehicles Expendable space launch systems Vehicles introduced in 1987