Gaganyaan mission: ISRO all set to launch uncrewed flight test from Sriharikota today; when and where to watch live streaming

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set for the Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission, an important part of its ambitious human space mission Gaganyaan, at 8 am today from the spaceport at Sriharikota.

"The test is scheduled for October 21, 2023, at 0800 Hrs. IST from the First launchpad at SDSC-SHAR, Sriharikota. It will be a short-duration mission and the visibility from the Launch View Gallery (LVG) will be limited," the space agency wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

A single-stage liquid propulsion rocket, equipped with a Crew Module and Crew Escape System, is slated for a lift-off from the first launch pad at the spaceport at 8 am on Saturday. The test vehicle mission is aimed at studying the safety of the crew module and crew escape system in bringing Indian astronauts back to Earth in the eventual Gaganyaan mission.

The Gaganyaan mission aims to send humans into space on a Low Earth Orbit of 400km for a three-day mission and bring them safely back to earth in 2025.

On Saturday, ISRO would attempt a successful launch of its Test Vehicle - Demonstration (TV-D1), the single stage liquid propulsion rocket.

"TV-D1 Test Flight. The countdown leading to the launch at 08.00 hrs IST on October 21, has commenced," ISRO said on Friday.

The success of this test flight would set the stage for the remaining qualification tests and uncrewed missions, leading to the first Gaganyaan programme, ISRO said.

In the first test flight on Saturday, the crew module would capture flight data for evaluation of the performance of various systems onboard, enabling the scientists to gain knowledge on the performance of the vehicle.

A few days back, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting to assess progress of India’s Gaganyaan Mission and to outline the future of India’s space exploration endeavours.

Building on the success of the Indian space initiatives, including the recent Chandrayan-3 and Aditya L1 Missions, PM directed that India should now aim for new and ambitious goals, including setting up ‘Bharatiya Antariksha Station’ (Indian Space Station) by 2035 and sending first Indian to the Moon by 2040.

Gaganyaan Mission: How to watch live?

ISRO aims for full public participation and invites audiences to enjoy the action-packed launching process digitally through several streaming platforms. Viewers can log in to ISRO's official website to watch the spectacular proceedings.

Livestream of the event will also be available on ISRO's official Facebook page and YouTube channel, reaching out to the space community's broad spectrum. India's national broadcaster, Doordarshan, will also contribute to the live streaming through DD National TV.

Also Read: As ISRO gears up for Gaganyaan testing, know more about Rakesh Sharma: India's first astronaut who went into space