Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle

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 developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to place 150 kg satellites into LEO.[1] This project was started by India during the early 1980s to develop technologies needed for a payload to be placed into a geostationary orbit.[2][3] Its design was based on Satellite Launch Vehicle.[4] 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.[2] The payloads of ASLV were Stretched Rohini Satellites.[4]

Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle
ASLV liftoff
FunctionSmall launch vehicle
ManufacturerISRO
Country of originIndia
Size
Height23.5 m (77 ft)
Diameter1 m (3 ft 3 in)
Mass41,000 kg (90,000 lb)
Capacity
Payload to 400 km LEO150 kg (330 lb)
Associated rockets
FamilySLV, Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
Launch history
StatusRetired
Launch sitesSriharikota
Total launches4
Successes1
Failures2
Partial failures1
First flight24 March 1987
Last flight4 May 1994
Notable payloadsSROSS
First stage
Engines2 solid
Thrust502.6 kN (113,000 lbf) each
Specific impulse253 seconds (2.48 km/s)
Burn time49 seconds
FuelSolid
Second stage
Engines1 solid
Thrust702.6 kN (158,000 lbf)
Specific impulse259 seconds (2.54 km/s)
Burn time45 seconds
FuelSolid
Third stage
Engines1 solid
Thrust304 kN (68,000 lbf)
Specific impulse276 seconds (2.71 km/s)
Burn time36 seconds
FuelSolid
Fourth stage
Engines1 solid
Thrust90.7 kN (20,400 lbf)
Specific impulse277 seconds (2.72 km/s)
Burn time45 seconds
FuelSolid
Fifth stage
Engines1 solid
Thrust35 kN (7,900 lbf)
Specific impulse281 seconds (2.76 km/s)
Burn time33 seconds
FuelSolid

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 150 kg (330 lb) to an orbit of 400 km (250 mi) with a 47-degree inclination.[4]

At liftoff, the ASLV generated 909.9 kN (204,500 lbf) of thrust. It was a 41,000-kilogram (90,000 lb) rocket, measuring 23.5 metres (77 ft) in length with a core diameter of one metre (3 ft 3 in).[4] 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.[5]

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 statistics
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1
1987
1990
1994
  •   Failure
  •   Partial failure
  •   Success

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.[6]

Flight № Date / time (UTC) Rocket,

Configuration

 Launch site Payload Payload mass Orbit User Launch
outcome
D1 24 March 1987[7] ASLV Satish Dhawan Space Centre SROSS-A 150 kg (330 lb) Failure
First stage failed to ignite after launch
D2 13 July 1988[7] ASLV Satish Dhawan Space Centre SROSS-B 150 kg (330 lb) Failure
Control problems caused launcher to disintegrate
D3 20 May 1992[7] ASLV Satish Dhawan Space Centre SROSS-C 106 kg (234 lb) Partial failure[8]
Orbit lower than expected and incorrect spin-stabilization. Decayed quickly.
D4 5 May 1994[7][9] ASLV Satish Dhawan Space Centre SROSS-C2 113 kg (249 lb) Success[8]
gollark: 3 is a hash of "namespace identifier" and thing.
gollark: Oh, 4 bits version.
gollark: Oh, 1 to 3 bits version.
gollark: 126 bits ID, 2 bits version.
gollark: Hard to say. Depends how many UUIDs ever have been generated.

See also
  • Comparison of orbital launchers families

References
  1. "ASLV". Retrieved 28 December 2014.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-08-29. Retrieved 2009-07-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. Menon, Amarnath (15 April 1987). "Setback in the sky". India Today. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
  4. "Encyclopedia Astronautica Index: 1".
  5. Mukunth, Vasudevan. "U.R. Rao, Former Chairman Who Helped ISRO Settle Down". thewire.in. Retrieved 2018-02-20.
  6. Indian Space Research Organization (2015). "4.1 The Spaceport of ISRO - K. Narayana". From Fishing Hamlet to Red Planet: India's Space Journey. India: Harper Collins. pp. 328, 329. ISBN 9789351776901. While most of the facilities realised for SLV-3 was utilised for ASLV, a new launch pad was built in the same complex.This was because, unlike SLV-3, the ASLV had strap-ons and was vertically integrated.
  7. McDowell, Jonathan. "Launch Log". Jonathan's Space Page. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  8. http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/heasarc/missions/sross3.html
  9. "List of ASLV Launches". Retrieved January 8, 2019.

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