Two Unmanned Missions and Vyoma Mitra

In News

ISRO Chairman K Sivan has detailed about two unmanned missions as part of the Gaganyaan mission and unveiled Vyomamitra, the android robot that would be sent to space before the astronauts.

In-Detail

The Gaganyaan mission is slated for launch in December 2021.
At the inaugural session of a symposium on “Human Spaceflight and Exploration — Present Challenges and Future Trends,” Sivan had mentioned that before the launch of the Gaganyaan mission, there will be two unmanned space missions.
One in December 2020 and the other in June 2021.
As per the chairman, the Gaganyaan mission is not only aiming for the first human space flight but also will be setting up a platform for a new space station that will have continuous human space presence.
Thus, to fulfil the future requirements, ISRO has initiated a full-fledged astronaut training facility near Bengaluru.
The space agency is also collaborating with other space agencies like NASA and Roscosmos on human space flight and is learning from their experience.
Also, ISRO is looking towards the Gaganyaan mission to assist it in the long-term goal of interplanetary missions.
As far as the technology for the mission is concerned, ISRO has already demonstrated its capabilities by developing a 10-tonne payload-carrying launcher, space-grade parachutes, etc.
The four astronauts for the mission have already been selected from a pool of Indian Air Force pilots and will go space flight tests soon.

Vyomamitra

At the symposium, ISRO has also unveiled its space robot, the Vyomamitra, that would be sent to space in one of the unmanned missions before the Gaganyaan.
Vyomamitra is a lady robot.
The name is a combination of two Sanskrit words – Vyoma (Space) and Mitra (Friend).
The robot is designed to perform life support operations, monitor module parameters, switch panel operations, etc.
The robot would also converse with the astronauts, recognise them and can also respond to their queries.
Environmental life support functions like detecting temperature changes in the cabin, change in air condition and warning the astronauts.