• Chennai-based space startup Agnikul Cosmos successfully carried out a sub-orbital test-flight of its home-built 3D-printed semi-cryogenic rocket — Agnibaan — from its launch pad at Sriharikota.

• This remarkable feat has been achieved entirely through indigenous design and development. 

• The test-flight of Agnibaan Sub-Orbital Technology Demonstrator (SOrTeD) on May 30 took place at 7.15 am at the Sriharikota launch pad located within ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre.

• The vehicle was completely designed in-house and was powered by the world’s first single piece 3D-printed engine and also happens to be India’s first flight with a semi-cryogenic engine.

• All the mission objectives of this controlled vertical ascent flight were met and performance was nominal.

• This was the fifth attempt by Agnikul to launch the Agnibaan SOrTeD since March 22.

• The launch makes Agnikul Cosmos, an IIT Madras-incubated startup, the second private company in India to achieve this feat. The private company that first accomplished this was Skyroot Aerospace, which launched Vikram-S in November 2022. 

What is Agnibaan?

• Agnibaan is a customisable, two-stage launch vehicle that can carry a payload of up to 300 kg into orbit of about 700 km.

• The rocket uses a semi-cryogenic engine with a mix of liquid and gas propellants, a technology that is yet to be demonstrated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in any of its rockets.

• The SOrTeD mission is a single-stage launch vehicle demonstration that will be powered by a semi-cryogenic engine, the Agnilet, a sub-cooled liquid oxygen-based propulsion system developed indigenously.

• Powered by sub-cooled Liquid Oxygen (LOX) and Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), the vehicle is equipped with four carbon composite fins to provide passive control.

• A semi-cryogenic engine uses liquid oxygen (which is very cold) and regular fuel, like kerosene or ATF, while a cryogenic engine uses both liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, both of which are extremely cold. The main difference is that semi-cryogenic engines use less cold fuel, making them simpler and cheaper to handle and store compared to cryogenic engines. 

• The startup has readied the vehicle with the first-ever ethernet-based avionics architecture and fully in-house developed autopilot software from India.

3D-printed Agnilet engine

• The Agnilet engine, developed by Agnikul, is the world’s first single-piece 3D-printed engine. It was designed and manufactured entirely in India and successfully test-fired in early 2021. 

• Single piece engine using 3D printing means that the entire part was made as one continuous piece using a 3D printer, rather than being assembled from multiple parts. 

• This achievement marked a significant milestone for 3D printing technology in India, which has traditionally been reserved for medical implants.

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